Dread Fox Book 2:Equestrian Misadventures
by Half-beastdragonsoul2013
Summary: After his "adventure" in the distant past, Daichi "Nazou" Hayashi finally gets to have a break... maybe. But it all starts with a Sonic Rainboom in the Mobian night sky... Eventual FlutterOC romance, AU because Season 3 did not happen and Humor because of Pinkie Pie. UPDATE: Takes place sometime after season 2 finale. I don't own MLP: Fim and this is part of the Hayashi series.
1. Rainbow Dash

_Hello again. The only reason I'm making an MLP FiM fanfic is because of my inner pegasister is bothering me. I can never understand why people like a show that's intended for little kids. *sigh* And yes, it involves my OC, and he's gonna explore Equestria in my place. Nazou's demon form has been switched out for his pony form. _

_His pony form can be described as a crimson-coated unicorn with a mahogany colored mane with red highlights and dark blue eyes. In addition, his tail more or less resembles his fox tails, which looks like a paintbrush. Oh, and his cutie mark seems to be a question mark... because of his name. _

_HB DS(Fox):Pony self, I blame you for this. I was hoping you wouldn't pop up and interrupt me._

_HB DS(Pony):Not my fault, it's YOURS! Problem? _

_HB DS(Fox):After I finish this, can you leave me alone? _

_HB DS(Pony):Nope. Imma gonna be a troll and... and... *tries to type on keyboards, but fails because of hooves.* _

_Anyway... now that I have an inner pegasister inside me, she looks like a bronze-yellow Earth pony with a black mane, black tail and light brown eyes. Her cutie mark... is a pencil. Yes, a pencil. My initial appearance is a Mobian vixen with essentially brown fur and tails with mahogany hair, yellow eyes and a white muzzle. Also, I wear a lot of shorts and vests._

* * *

_**Mobius, Hayashi Residence**_

One year had passed, and the Hayashi has grown somewhat since then. Scarlet sighed contentedly as she looked up at the stars (with no memory of her involvement in the distant past), her brown hair and orange-yellow tails swaying in the cold night.

While that is going on, a familiar half-human woman clad in an orange kimono walked in as she closed the sliding door from behind, stood silently and gave a soft chuckle.

"Still thinking about him, are you, Misaki-chan?" The woman asked.*

"Yeah." Scarlet answered. "Akira-mama, do you still think of Kiba-papa?"

"Even more so. It doesn't feel the same without him around." Akira sighed as she motioned her daughter to sit down. "Can't sleep?"

"Nuh-uh. Do you believe in talking ponies?"

"If you believe in a certain moon fairy that looks so human that she can pass off as one?"

"Mom... Do you mean those stories about Sailor Moon that Ayame-obasan and Nazou- erm, Daichi-ojisan told me about."*

"Yes. I'm referring to those. At least it clears up one thing."

"What?"

"At least we know his real name..." The half-human woman chuckled and gave a calm smile. "Anyway, it's late. Get some sleep."

The brunette nodded and left her mother's presence. There was silence until a deafening boom was heard in the distance... but the shockwave was seen. As a rainbow and the sound blew the half-human into the room, overwhelmed by the sudden burst of energy.

"Are you alright?" Scarlet asked with concern as she helped her mother up.

"I'm fine. Thanks." Akira nodded as she stood and brushed the dust off her kimono. "Something tells me that Sonic did it."

"Mr. Sonic did what?"

"He finally boosted with a rainbow."

"But Mr. Sonic can't fly. Or have a rainbow as a boost."

Silence ruled the night once again, but the boom was much louder, knocking down the two. Once the half-human woman and the Mobian brunette recovered their balance, they had a strange urge to follow the direction of the sound. The two left the house and entered the nearby forest, which was unusually dark this time of night, as it was a new moon.

It was some time until the two reached a clearing and found what they were looking for: the source of the strange light came from a young girl about 14-15 years old in human years with rainbow hair clad in a cyan hoodie with short sleeves and blue khakis. What was strange was that the girl had rainbow-colored hair... and cyan wings. There were a bunch of scratches on her entire body, but aside from that she was unconscious. Despite being in a kimono, Akira walked closer to the girl and carried her bridal-style back home.

**The next morning...**

The girl woke up because of the sunlight in her face and saw that everything looked different. Instead of hooves, she has hands and feet. And for some reason, clothes for that matter. The first thing she did was look around the room. It was simple... and it looked a lot like one of those rooms in the Nann-ga that Scootaloo reads.

"Sliding doors... check. Tatami floors... check. Strange thing with fox ears and three tails... wait... what?" The girl gave a questioning look as she looked at the sleeping woman. "What the? Hey, are you alright?"

The rainbow-haired girl shook Akira so violently that she quickly woke up and felt the younger girl's face and stared at a cute face with rose-colored eyes. Upon realizing what has happened, she calmly stood up and gave a happy smile.

"Oh, you're up." Akira deadpanned as she put her arms behind her back.

"Hey... where in Equestria am I? Why do I have hands and feet and-? What the hay am I?" The girl was freaking out and panicking a bit until the half-human woman patted her head.

"I doubt you would be able to explain yourself right now. Just come with me." The half-human woman replied. "Oh, we don't have hay."

"How do you know what I was thinking?"

"I have... limited mind-reading powers."

Akira escorted the girl to the living room and at the sight of Scarlet, the girl was freaking out again for a moment. When she was calm, she sat down with her legs crossed.

"Tell me... Where am I? And what are you?" The girl asked.

"I'm Scarlet, a Mobian." Scarlet inquired. "What happened to you?"

"Humans? Mobians? Hrm... Last I remember, I was hanging out with my friends in Ponyville when I saw something twinkle in the sky... even though the sun was still up. Next thing I know, I'm well... here with you two." To answer your question, I'm Rainbow Dash, a pegasus."

"Rainbow Dash... uhh, you look more like a human girl with wings to us." The Mobian vixen sweatdropped as she scratched her head. "I'm not sure I follow."

"You don't believe me?" Rainbow Dash frowned. "Then what's with her ears and why does she have tails?"

"Do you have a problem with that?" Anger marks showed up on her temples as Akira calmly explained...or at least tried to. Her ears were twitching at this. "First of all, I'm half-human. Second of all, you don't want to see me really angry."

"Uhhh..." RD smirked for a moment, but noticed Scarlet shake with fear and was about to say more when a gloved hand covered her mouth.

"Rainbow Dash, you DO NOT want to see my mother to get angry. T-Take my word for it." Scarlet quickly shook her head and took off her right hand. "Akira-mama is REALLY SCARY when she's mad."

"Whoa..." It took some time for the half-human woman to calm down and the rainbow-haired girl sighed. She cringed when she tried flapping her wings and felt a stinging sensation instead. "Agh, looks like I won't be able to fly for some time. I must have strained my wings too hard."

Akira stood up and left, leaving Rainbow Dash and Scarlet by themselves. An awkward silence filled the living room until the vixen finally spoke up.

"What was that last night?" Scarlet inquired.

"Wait... what are you talking about?" RD thought about it and gave the vixen a confused look.

"I'm talking about the rainbow in the sky last night!"

"Oh, you must be referring to the Sonic Rainboom!" RD grinned proudly as she pointed to herself and grumbled a bit. "I'm the fastest flyer in Equestria... and I still can't join the Wonderbolts... Dumb flight school. If only I wasn't kicked out..."

"Don't worry about it, Rainbow Dash. At least you're practicing lots, right?"

"Yeah, there's that... Anyway, how am I supposed to go home?"

"I have a teleporter waiting in my room if you wanna use it."

Both their stomachs growled. Before they knew it, two kids came up and the vixen came to greet them... only to be glomped into the floor.

"Ooof!" Scarlet gave a nervous chuckle. "Kuro-kun, Shiro-kun, I was hoping you wouldn't do that today."

"Awwww..." Shiro got off his sister and quickly sat down beside RD. "Fine."

Kuro's still laughing even though he had to get off her and stared at RD. "Uhhhh..."

"This is Rainbow Dash. She's visiting us today from Ponyville."

"'Sup!" RD responded by quickly raising her arm.

The four decided to go outside where they can be in the sun and such. By the time Akira came back, she decided to return to her room to take care of Izumi...

* * *

Meanwhile...

"Well, we might as well go outside... I don't feel like inventing stuff." Scarlet sighed.

_"Inventing what, Misaki? Is the teleporter fixed?" A strange voice asked._

"What the!?" The brunette turned around to see a familiar half-human man clad in Feudal Era clothing. But the difference was that he no longer had long mahogany dreads, but instead had short, semi-spiky hair. Scarlet ran to her uncle and gave him a heartwarming hug that was squee-inducing. "Dai-ojisan! What brings you here?"

_"I came here to visit my favorite nieces, Misaki and Izumi. "_ _Daisuke replied. "How is she, anyway?" _

"She's a heavy sleeper." Scarlet deadpanned. "Oh, this is Rainbow Dash."

_"Nice to meet you, Rainbow Dash. I'm Hayashi Daisuke." The male half-demon introduced himself. "Scarlet, erm, Misaki's uncle." _

"Wait a sec... Fox ears, fox tails... Hmm..." The rainbow-haired girl stared at the male half-demon and grinned. "You're one of those mystical foxes Fluttershy heard about. What are they again? I don't remember."

_"Kitsune. On a technical note, half-kitsune. It's not important." Daichi sweatdropped and nervously chuckled. "Long day, isn't it?"_

"Uh-huh..." RD's attention shifted to a big and yellow, cute-looking bird as it roosted beside her. "Who's this?"

_"Enzo. Akira's timebird. Looks like a cross between a chick and an ostrich, but is actually a Time Guardian. Unfortunately, she's learned how to control space." Daichi growled. "Makes a lotta sense as her previous owner watched over time and all that jazz." _

This is where everything changed. Enzo purposely roosted herself between RD and Daichi and surrounded the two in a magical field, bathed in a yellow aura.

_"Uh oh... I don't like where this is going." _

"What's wrong. It's not like-"

_"Last time this happened, I was sent back eight thousand twenty three years in time! I almost changed the future because of just being in the past."_ _Daichi's eyes widened as he cringed in fear. "It's cute, but I don't wanna be sent back in time again!"_

"Relax!" Rainbow Dash waved her hand and shrugged her shoulders. "No, wait... start panicking!"

"Meep." Both of them were screaming in fear as their eyes widened, their bodies eventually engulfed in the same yellow aura.

_"Misaki... Tell Akira I said hiiiiii- Waaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh!"_

It wasn't long before the two faded into motes of light and disappeared elsewhere. But... this is the beginning for Daichi "Nazou" Hayashi, whose adventures in Equestria have just... started...

=Chapter 1 End=

* * *

_*AN: Rainbow Dash's human form is really similar to her pegasus form in the sense of physical appearance. This entire chapter is the ONLY chapter with heavy gratuitous Japanese and references to other fanfics. Scarlet's comment is an allusion to my Sailor Moon fanfic, "Dread Fox and Moon Rabbit", while the shtick with Scootaloo and her Nann-ga refers to "On A Cross and Arrow", an MLP fanfic by Terrichance that involves rule 63. Finally, this chapter's short. :P_

_So, uh... don't be angry at me. Sure I like making lots and lots of allusions, but that isn't the point. The point is that I try NOT to plagarize someone else's and as always, I DO NOT OWN MLP FiM... or Sonic for that matter. The only stuff I own here are my OC's. _


	2. Don't Freak Out The Locals

_Some time has passed... not really. Let me explain the whole time-space shtick in here: I'll have to assume that time in Mobius and Equestria are sorta similar. Time in Equestria passes slightly faster than in Mobius due to everything being controlled by something. Celestia moves the Sun, Luna moves the moon*, Pegasi control teh weather, Earth ponies specialize with plants and animals (Fluttershy being an exception, due to her being a Pegasus) and unicorns can do magic. It would be really nice to have it with 9-10 chapters. Because I'm gonna MAKE chapters 2-9 LONG!_

_And, yes, I know that I'm ahead of myself in the sense of making this after watching a couple episodes. But still! Enough with the notes or else I won't be able to get on with it._

* * *

_**Equestria, Canterlot, Royal Palace**_

It was the end of the day and Princess Luna has finished bringing up the moon. She finally regained that ability after a thousand years of imprisonment. A couple months have passed since Candace (I meant Cadence, typo) and Shining Armor's wedding. The dark alicorn was happy for the two and watched over the star-filled night sky.

"Nothing better than to watch the moon and the stars to pass the time." Luna sighed.

Silence ruled the skies once again... until two meteors blazed through the sky, one of them being a rainbow flying towards the direction of Ponyville. The dark alicorn knew who that was: the only pony who would have something like that would have to be Rainbow Dash. She scanned the skies for trouble... and there it was, a swarm of black and green flew towards her direction; it HAD to be Chrysalis and her changelings at another attempt to invade Canterlot. Luna thought about it... and decided to confont the army on her own before they would have a chance to come closer. (Celestia couldn't beat Chrysalis last time around, so had to be her turn.)

_**Outside Canterlot...**_

"Come, my changelings! We may have lost the last time, but this time... we shall prevail!" The voice declared as she flew towards Canterlot and smiled to herself then laughed in a haughty manner... which was heard by Luna, who stood in her way.

"So... if it isn't Chrysalis of the Changelings... What brings you here?" Luna growled.

Before Chrysalis coulds say anything, a large fireball comes crashing in and nearly burns the midnight alicorn for a moment. What was completely unnerving was the sudden appearance of the strange being. He had two legs and strangely long hair, but wore unusual clothes and had fox ears in place of human ears. In addition, the man had four mahogany tails with white tips.

"You had a secret weapon, you cheater!" Chrysalis cried. "But it won't work this time! Changelings... ATTACK!"

The changelings did as she commanded, but when they flew closer to the strange being, it glared at them and spoke. His words cowed them back to their queen, but she stood strong.

_"Dunno what's going on, but no one calls me a weapon!" The being growled as he cracked his knuckles. "We can do this the easy way by flying away to wherever you came from... ooor the hard way, which I define that as beating all your erm, minions to a pulp. But I can't do that because you're a girl and well... we don't want to know what happens when someone like you gets hurt physically." _

"You dare underestimate me, Queen Chrysalis of the Changelings!?" The changeling bellowed.

_"No. I do not enjoy fighting with girls... (except my kid sister, that is)." The voice flatly replied. "You must be on your second attempt to invade Canterlot, isn't that right?" _

"You... How dare you know my plan!?"

_"Let's see... almost ruining a wedding the first time and now invading a country for kicks? What are you, emo vampires or something?" _

"Yes, but-"

Unfortunately, Chrysalis was interrupted again, only for Luna to blast them back to whence they came, hearing the distant screaming of, "We're blasting off again..." and then a twinkle appeared.

"Thank you very much, kind sir. For helping me protect Canterlot." Luna thanked the strange man. "Pray tell, what is your name?"

_"Uhhhhh Dai-" The man quickly stopped himself and shook his head, "My name's Crimson Edge." _

As Nazou and Luna flew back to Canterlot, the half-demon explained the midnight alicorn about himself and his heritage. (Not his other side of the family, mind you.) He explained to her his current appearance and was about to continue on to ask about Rainbow Dash when Luna interruped him and left for the Royal Palace.

_"Hrmm... It's still dark... I just wanna go home." Nazou thought as he grinned to himself, holding a bag of... something. "Good thing I still have my money." _

**_Meanwhile, at the Royal Palace..._**

Luna flew back to the Palace and noticed the guards watching over her older sister's room.

"Huh? What?" One of the Royal Guards snorted. "Oh... your Highness. What is the problem?"

"Can you let me in to wake up Celestia? It is almost her turn."

"Oh, right." The second guard woke up and magically opened the door, allowing entry for the midnight alicorn.

When she entered her older sister's room, it was surprisingly... empty. Everything was clean in the sense that the bed was magically made, windows are clean, windows are open... Wait! The windows are open!?

"Pfft." Luna rolled her eyes and trotted outside back to her room. "Troll."

_**Back in Canterlot...**_

The male half-demon looked around the castle town and took in the sights: the rest of teh palace, lots of shops, a donut parlor... So absorbed in the buildings that he didn't realize something fall down and hit his head. Poor Nazou was unable to see right, as if everything spun, then everypony's voices were becoming muffled and finally, everything went black.

At the same time, the royal couple, Shining Armor and Can- erm, Cadence returned to the capital only to find a commotion going on at the marketplace. When the two trotted closer, one of the nearby unicorns were concerned and continued to stare at the strange being.

"Umm... what's going on?" Cadence asked.

"You may want to call the doctor." A random unicorn shuddered. "Think he's dead."

"Let me through."

The unicorn nodded and the pink alicorn and white male stallion trotted as the sea of ponies divided to make way. What surprised the two was that the strange being lying on the ground wasn't dead, but unconscious, holding a bag... of something.

"Are you alright?" Shining Armor looked down at the strange bipedal creature. "Say something... Uh oh. "

_Nothing happened, he didn't move, he didn't stir, nothing; worst case scenario being he's dead or unconscious. The crowd of ponies gasped and there were several hushed voices. Only Shining Armor and Cadence remained silent, but still concerned at the same time. _

"Everypony, remain calm." One of the Royal Guards who was around, tried to reassure everypony and turned to SA and Cadence. "What shall be done with this erm, man?"

"I should bring him to a nearby inn. And yes, I will pay." SA nodded as he pulled Nazou along using his magic.

_**Later, at an inn... **_

"Do you think he'll be alright?" Cadence asked worriedly.

"He will be." SA replied and noticed the bag on the table. When he magically opened it, out came a small pile of rings. It IS unbelievably shiny, lightweight and can pass off as pure gold. The sight of the shiny accessories interested the white unicorn and gave a confused look.

When he tried to touch it, Nazou woke up with a sleepy look and immediately grabbed the bag at a speed faster than the naked eye.

"I told you so." Shining Armor smirked a bit and looked up at the half-demon. "So, tell me. What happened to you and why are you here? And what are these things?"

"Shining Armor! You don't have to be rude to the strange being." Cadence scolded her husband and frowned.

_"My name's erm, uhhh... Crimson Edge." The strange being answered as he sat down. "I'm only here because my kid sister's timebird sent me here and that's my money you're touching. And you are?" _

"I am Shining Armor, the Captain of the Royal Guard... and this is my wife, Mi Amore Cadenza." SA faced his wife and smiled.

"It's Cadence." The pink alicorn cleared her throat.

"Oh, right." SA blushed a bit and became briefly embarrased. "Sorry, honey."

"That's okay."

_"Anyway... do you know a rainbow-haired young girl?" Daichi asked. "Have you seen her?"_

"Hmm... you're talking about Rainbow Dash." Cadence replied. "She's a friend of my sister, Twilight Sparkle."

_"Sister? Don't you mean sister-in-law, Candace?" _

"It's Cadence." Slightly irritated, the pink alicorn shook her head, calmed down a bit and continued. "Why?"

_"You're right in the sense that I'm not like a pony, Can- erm, Cadence. On a technical note, I'm half-human. But it's not important. What is important is that I want to go back home to my world." Crimson Edge explained. "I was just visiting my sister as usual when her dumb timebird did its magic and transported Rainbow Dash here and sent me along with accidentally. Oh, and a weird black unicorn-thing almost invaded Canterlot, but the midnight alicorn blasted the other one back to whence it came." _

"You met Aunt Luna?"

_"Yes. Anyway, I'm a shapeshifter." _

"And how? All the shapeshifters I've met are horrible. One of them came close to controlling Equestria last time."

_"But I'm a good one, promise." Daichi raised his hand and reassured the couple. "I'll show you." _

The half-demon stood up and demonstrated his power by closing his eyes and clasping his hands until a black aura emanated from his body. Six black orbs materialized and surrounded him and spun around to a point that he was completely engulfed in white and levitated into the air, creating a pillar of crimson energy that pierced the Equestrian sky. When the pillar died down, a crimson-coated, mahogany-maned unicorn with sky blue eyes and a mahogany-colored tail that was more fox-like in appearance. Now ponified, Daisuke/Nazou/Crimson Edge used the rest of his magical power to wipe the memory of his appearance from everyone in Canterlot. It works... too well, it seems and the only ponies who know of this are Shining Armor and Can- erm, Cadence... to a certain extent.*

_AN: Luna knows of his normal form, and the newlywed couple know him as a pony. _

_"Hrm..." The ponified half-demon trotted over to teh couple and waved his hoof. "No time to waste. I don't want to be caught by anyone else."_

_**Much later...**_

Time went back to normal and yes, the crimson unicorn just left. Surprised by what had happened, Shining Armor muttered, "One thing's for sure, he's one powerful... half-human."

"Shiny, do you know what I think?" Cadence gazed lovingly at her husband to break the awkward silence.

"What?" SA asked as he blushed a luminescent red.

"We've seen stranger things in our lives, haven't we?" The pink alicorn deadpanned and then she noticed something lying on the floor. Upon a closer look, it was a picture of Daisuke along with a half-human woman, a two-tailed fox girl and two human boys... all in strange clothes. When she flipped it, it had something like this,

[Dear Nazou,

When we first met, you were convinced that I was your sister, even though I didn't know you at the time. How was I supposed to know if we were, and you said that the proof of our heritage lies in our face. I don't know what that woman-that-looked-like-me said, but she was really sure that we were related. Even though I can be blunt and grumpy most of the time, I have my own ways of showing that I care. As much as I enjoy having you visit me on a frequent basis, you should go on an adventure every now and then so you can have something to tell next time. You still went looking for me even though I was brainwashed and had my memories taken away from me; you nearly sacrificed yourself to save someone that considered you as a friend. Heck, you even saved ME of all people... even when- second thought, I should NOT write about that just in case.

Sincerely, your kid sister, Akira.

P.S. If anyone else catches wind of this, I'll explode and- I'm not gonna go that far in here.]

"Awww, she's smiling in there." Cadance chuckled. "So that's his sister. We should give it-"

"He's gone." SA flatly replied. "He's not in Canterlot anymore."

"Maybe Twilight knows a thing or two about him."

Shining Armor nodded and quickly wrote a letter about what has happened so far. When he finished, he folded the letter and magically put it in an envelope along with the photo he found. And so, the couple sent the envelope towards the direction of Ponyville via mail and returned to the palace.*

* * *

Later, in some place called Ponyville...

A magenta-coated unicorn stepped out of her room and descended the stairs unto the library and sighed deeply. The library was quiet, as it should be. Until loud knocking was heard and she opened it with magic and stepped outside, only to be tackled by Ditzy Doo, a grey-coated, blonde pegasus mare.

"Owww..." The purple unicorn mare rubbed her head as she cringed, her rump on the floor.

"Uh, are you okay, Twilight?" Ditzy asked with concern as she helped the unicorn up.

"Yes?"

It took a moment, but the grey pegasus mare fumbled around her saddlebag and found a letter before a muffin. She gave said letter to Twilight and gave a happy smile as she nodded and took off.

Twilight Sparkle took the letter and returned to her room, interested in the contents of the letter. When the purple unicorn magically opened it, she was overjoyed to hear news from her older brother and sister-in-law... and perplexed by a photo sent with the letter. She opened the letter and started reading. It went something like this:

[Dear Twilight Sparkle,

Life has changed so much since the last time we've kept touch. Me and Can- erm, Cadence came back from our honeymoon in Neighpon and the first thing that

happens coming back to Canterlot is the sudden appearance of a weird being who calls himself Crimson Edge. I don't have much to say about him, but all I can

say that he is a crimson unicorn stallion with a mane that's whose color is almost like red velvet. Anyway, don't call Cadence, "Candace". She doesn't like that

at all. Finally, I sent this picture in the hopes that it might have any idea who Crimson Edge really is. Even I can't sense if he's a friend or foe, so I was hoping if

Rainbow Dash would know anything about this guy.

Your B.B.B.F.F, Shining Armor.

PS. The writing on the back of the picture I sent you is either unreadable or in a foreign language.]

When she finished reading it, a purple baby dragon with a neon green chest and dark green spikes yawned and got out of bed, ready to go.

"Mornin' Twilight!" The dragon greeted.

"Morning, Spike." Twilight greeted back without looking.

"What's that you got there? Is it a letter from Shining Armor?"

"Uh-huh. Wait... back of the picture... Ugh, I can't read it." The purple unicorn attempted to read it but shook her head and groaned loudly.

"Why not?"

"Wow, when Shining Armor said that the writing in this photo is either unreadable or in a foreign language, he was right! Maybe the others have an idea who he is." She sweatdropped uneasily and then her stomach growled; the look on her face meant that she wasn't amused.

When her left front hoof touched the picture, something happened. The purple mare heard voices in her head and imagined herself in a sea of grass under a clear blue sky at the edge of a forest. It was soothing, feeling the wind blow in your face. One of the voices was female, and this one sounded rough, but sensed a hint of kindness. Another one was male and somehow sounded slightly similar to SA, but slightly deeper and from what was going on, this one apparently seemed as if this voice was serious, but not really.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a crimson-coated, mahogany-maned unicorn stallion with sky blue eyes and an unusually strong build along with a green vest opened the door with his head, prompting the bell to ring. Twilight immediately dashed down to the ground floor, ready for anything.

_"So this is the library..." The crimson unicorn looked around and then down at the librarian. _

"Welcome to Golden Oaks Library. How may I help you?" Twilight Sparkle inquired in her best voice.

_"Do you have any books on unicorn magic?" _

"Yes?" The stallion asked with a hesitating tone.

_"Do I need a library card?" _

"Nope. Any book borrowed from this library is to be returned in three days... and can be extended up to the week." The librarian answered as she walked over to the shelf and magically lifted a purple book with a unicorn's profile and noticed that her customer DOES NOT have a saddlebag. And he fits the exact description in Shining Armor's letter! "Wait a minute, you look more like an Earth pony than a unicorn with a body like that."

_"Sumimasen ga, anata wa sore de mondai ga arimasu ka?" [Excuse me, but do you have a problem with that?] The unicorn asked in a foreign language. _

"Speak Equestrian, sir. I can't understand Neighponese."

_"I said, do you have a problem with buff-looking unicorns?" He asked again, but this time with slight irritation and sighed. "'Took me a couple hours on foo- erm, hoof, but I finally did it!" _

"Did what?"

_"I ran all the way here from Canterlot on my own. Wait a sec... are you Twilight Sparkle?" _

"How do you know who I am?"

_"I don't. Somebody, erm, -somepony- named Shining Armor told me about you. It's not like I'm gonna hurt you or anything." _

"How... do you know... about... Shining Armor!?" Twilight narrowed her eyes and glared at him, almost about to burst into flames.

_"Great, my first day in Equestria and I'm already in trouble." The unicorn sighed deeply and backed away with fear. "Uh-oh..."_

"Twilight, what's going- GAH!" Spike screamed out of surprise.

"Spike, block the door. Don't let him out-" The librarian turned to her assistant with apprehension.

Before she could say anything else, the crimson unicorn bolted out of the library and motioned for the dragon to ride her and said, "We're going after him."

Crimson Edge screamed at the top of his lungs as he was being pursued by Twilight and Spike. His heart raced and his mind was flooded with possible scenarios that would involve lots and lots of interrogations. From what he knows so far, wait, he doesn't know a bit about Equestrian law. Only some bits and pieces of Mobian law, but that's it.

_"LEAVE ME ALONE, YOU LIEBERIAN! NOES!" Crimson Edge screamed, attracting other ponies attention and thought to himself "Urgh, she reminds me too much of MY kid sister, Akira. If there's one thing I know about little sisters, if you push their buttons too much or too hard..." He gulped loudly and continued screaming while running away from an enraged Twilight and quickly thought of his younger sister and gulped again, as he knew firsthand her infamous temper and how powerful she could be if angered. _

He was still screaming when he ran his hardest and found himself cloaked in flames... then surrounded in flames... that ended quickly when he bumped into a wall. Next, he stopped and ran towards Twilight. Not wanting to risk an embarrassing situation, when the two were within horn range, the purple mare teleported away while the crimson stallion dashed through to a point that both unicorns were back to back. Then he started running towards the direction of a familiar apple orchard and hid near one of the bricks so that the librarian won't find him.

_**Sweet Apple Acres**_

_"Phew, finally lost her." Crimson Edge sighed with relief. "Looks like it's gonna take awhile for my magic to be recharged. Argh, curse my slow regeneration- What the heck?" _

He was surprised by the sudden appearance of a lemon-coated, amaranth-maned, bow-toting filly with gamboge eyes looking up at him.

"Hi. Wha'cha doin'?" The filly asked.

_"Hiding from someone. Why?" _

"Twilight told me she was looking for you."

_"Great... the librarian? What does she have to do with this place?"_

"Twilight's a good friend of my sister's, an' she's right behind you." The filly smiled.

_"Meep." Crimson Edge's eyes looked behind and there she was; the purple mare glaring behind him. Before he could start running, a lasso came out of nowhere and wrapped around his legs, immobilizing the guy. "What the- I can't move!" _

"Lasso's darn hard, even if you tried, yah cain't move yerself." The new voice had a Southern accent. It came from an orange-coated, blonde pony wearing a Stetson hat.

_"So, these are really tight ropes, huh? Fine, I give up. I won't even try to resist." Crimson Edge sighed dejectedly. "Do your worst..." _

"Yah want me tah do mah worst? Well, ah believe Twilight wants to have ah word with you, erm..."

_"Gomen'nasai. Tonikaku... ore wa Crimson Edge." _

"Say, what now? Iffn more confusin' than Applebloom's fancy speak."

_"Sorry. Anyway, I'm Crimson Ed-" _

"Is that who I think it is!?" A new voice shouted.

_"That voice..." _

One moment later, he was untied and his ear twitched, responding to the new voice. It came from Rainbow Dash, who flew closer and did a hoofbump with the elder stallion.

"Daisuke, is that you?" Rainbow Dash asked incredulously.

_"I go by Crimson Edge now. At least while I'm here in Equestria." Daisuke/Crimson Edge answered. _

"Rainbow, you know THIS pony?" Twilight Sparkle gasped.

"Yep. Remember the other day when my Sonic Rainboom became so fast that I flew at the speed of light and disappeared?"

"Yeah... What happened to you?"

"Turns out that I crash-landed into someplace called Mobius. When I did, I was human!"

"Sugarcube... you became human?" The farmer wondered. "But how?"

_"Allow me to explain. When you are in a world that is different from your own, you either take on the dominant form of said world... or the form itself is based on personality. Humans have a natural urge to wear clothes as to not be in the nude." Crimson cleared his throat and explained. "But since it's Mobius, well... the world GAVE her a human form because she was already a pegasus. In my case, I have three forms, this one being my third. Most of the time, I would be in my human form... and in my usual clothes." _

"So you're saying that you're NOT a pony?" Twilight asked.

_"Nope."_

"You can't change back to your normal form?"

_"I think I was in my human form when I dropped in Canterlot yesterday. Everyone, er, everypony was intimidated by my form, save for Luna-san and used a transformation spell to change myself into this." The male unicorn shrugged. "The transformation spell took so much out of me that I won't be able to use magical enery for awhile. Plus, I take offense at Shining Armor's calling me a weird being. You haven't heard of humans or kitsune before?" _

"I didn't mean to take out my fear on you, Crimson." Twilight frowned a bit. "Guess we met on the wrong hoof."

With the exception of Rainbow Dash, everyone else introduced themselves and the problem's solved, right? WRONG!

"Oh, almost forgot." The purple mare opened her saddlebag and magically brought the photo back to the stallion. "I think this is yours."

_"Let me guess: Shining Armor mailed it to you?" Crimson flatly replied. _

"How did you know?"

_"My skill in mind-reading's limited. Did you try to read what's on the back of the photo, Twilight?" _

"I can't read it."

_"Figures. For public stuff, she would write in English and if it was private, she would write it in Japanese. I would have to guess that the their equine counterparts are Poniese and Neighponese. You see, me and my kid sister come from a fusion of humans and kitsune... and they didn't like us because we were different... and apparently really powerful." _

"Even more than Princess Celestia?" Applebloom asked.

_"In my case, nope. In my sister's case, not sure."_

"What's your sister look like, Crimson?"

The stallion responded by holding the photo and pointing to the brown-haired woman and explained in terms a filly would understand. All the stories that he had weren't much, but kept himself from worrying.

"Oh... I had no idea you and your sister went through so much." Twilight shed some tears and deadpanned. "But I still can't believe that you're technically much older than Princess Celestia and Luna and your sister would be as old as Cadance, sort of."

_"Well, no. I'm actually four hundred years old in kitsune years and I look like I'm in my mid-twenties. Kitsune actually live up to a thousand, the only exception being my ancestress being blessed with the gift of longevity from a certain moon fairy. RD would be 15, AJ would be 17, Applebloom would be around 8 and you would have to be 16-17 at this point in human years." Crimson smiled and chuckled. _

"What?"

_"You've got a cool brother in Shining Armor, y'know. And an awesome sister-in-law in Cadence." The eponymous stallion grinned. __"And... I know that I'm a pony, but what the heck am I?_

"Hmm... come to think of it, you're a unicorn." Rainbow Dash mused to herself.

_"Uni-whatnow?" _

"Unicorns are one of the three common pony races. Rainbow is a pegasus, while Applebloom's an Earth pony." Twilight explained. "Earth ponies have an affinity for the ground, meaning that they specialize with nature, Pegasi are affiliated with the sky, therefore giving them ability to control the weather and walk on clouds and Unicorns are able to use magic. At one point, a team of unicorns have been employed to raise the sun and moon."

_"I see... so, in a nutshell, unicorns are the magic users, while Earth ponies have an affinity for the ground and pegasus ponies for the sky." Crimson answered. "What about the one with everything." _

"One with everything... what do you mean?"

_"In my normal form, I met a cobalt pony with both horns and wings and a pink pony just like the other one. And I managed to sense immortality in one of them." _

"A pony with both horns and wings?" The librarian gave a light chuckle.

_"You know them somehow, most like." _

"Of course. The cobalt one you mentioned would be none other than Princess Luna, and the pink one is my sister-in-law, Cadence." Twilight saw the frown on the ponified half-human's face. "Are you okay?"

_"Yeah, I'm fine." CE listlessly replied and thought, "I never thought I would sense that familiar power again..."_

Crimson almost forgot about Spike, who was with somepony named Rarity... whoever that was, she must probably be older than the others. After some time has passed, both unicorns decided to return to the library with something in mind, leaving the Earth ponies to buck more apples. (Rainbow Dash got bored and went off to take a nap somewhere close by.) On their way to a place called Sugarcube Corner, a brick fell out of nowhere and hit poor Crimson. It was really more annoying than painful, so there.

"So, based on all your stories, you could be much older?" The purple mare asked.

_"I'm not too sure. But, yeah, I could be. CE replied. "You've never heard of humans before?" _

"I have... sort of. Humans are for all I know, legends. I didn't know that you came from that time!"

_"The Earth was supposed to be destroyed by a meteor after the events of Crimson End, but somehow, my kid sister's wish came true. On a technical note, I'm actually... from the distant past, a time when humans and demons had a fragile co-existence. I might as well be older than Celestia and Luna herself, but... I dunno." The stallion went on and on. "And Twilight?" _

"Yeah?"

_"Do you have any books on history? I need to confirm something." _

Listening to Crimson's ranting was strangely relaxing, even if it DID make him sound old. And it's almost as bad as Granny Smith's stories. The unicorn stallion stopped walking and closed his eyes. Random thoughts raced through his mind and strangely enough, he thought of what had happened when he heard the horrible truth.

_[Enter Flashback, Nazou's FPV]_

_"All those people... All those lives... Gone. I wasn't myself, but it was my own hands that became tainted." Akira fell down on her knees and shuddered as tears flowed down her face; she really wasn't holding back on her tears. "Now that everyone knows who I truly am, I'll-"_

_"Akira... don't you remember anything at all?" I asked angrily. "So what if you're different? So what if you're a half-human? Kiba, Ayame and Misaki didn't care about that at all, they still loved you anyway. Even if the other two were gone, there would at least one person who would care about you. I know that we're not proud of either of our heritages, but..." _

_I couldn't watch my kid sister mope anymore, and I had to walk over to her and calm her down by kneeling down and gave her a strong bear hug... which stopped her from crying and to be honest, this was the first time I've seen her cry. When Akira calmed down completely, she looked up at me and I told her this: _

_"All the people you've met, all the people who cared about you... As Ayame would say, 'No matter where we are... no matter if we're dead or alive, we'll always live on in your heart.' Dead in body, not in spirit, is the gist of it." I pointed to where her heart was. "So, cheer up. You still have family to come home to, 'kay?" _

_Akira nodded and stood up, then summoned her sword._

_[End Flashback]_

* * *

_**Meanwhile in Canterlot...**_

Whispers of the strange being finally reached Princess Celestia's ears, and the white alicorn was peeved at the fact that she was the only pony who did not see his face. So, after... important business was done, she flew to the royal library and shocked the librarian by requesting any information about the sudden appearance. Her long, sorbet-colored mane flowed about as she looked around for any clues of the "half-human" from what she heard from someponies. It was strange in the sense that she was only a filly when humans were around... even before her fight with Discord.

One of the tomes caught her attention and she magically took it out said tome and brought it to her searching eyes. It had a calming shade of green on the front and back while at the same time appeared to crumble due to it being at least a thousand. Despite being in a foreign language, Celestia was able to read it with no apparent difficulty whatsoever and opened the tome with the magic from her horn. The first paragraph described a pair of siblings with ears and tails of a fox and a human likeness. One of the siblings was said to be a handsome man with eyes the same color as the sea, thin marks on the right side of his face and long, crimson hair. In addition, he was clad in unusual clothes and posessed four tails. All within a youthful appearance, it seems. But, despite his appeance, the man is said to have lived through a time where humans co-existed with fearsome creatures called demons and is said to be descended from a silver kitsune who once knew of a civilization that lived on the moon.

The other one was said to be a bane to everything that existed, a monster of sorts. Fate has frowned on this one and this one was a heartless girl with ears of a fox, shared the same thin marks on her brother's face and had short hair that had the color of mud and parts of it seemed to have a reddish appeance. Also, the girl has soul-piercing eyes of gold and was also said to be the living embodiment of will, in addition to posessing three tails. Alas, this girl also posesses a curse that grants control over darkness and strength exceeding that of a human at the cost of her own memories.

While she was reading, Princess Luna attempted to sneak behind, but failed and earned a disdainful look from her older sister.

"Thou hath found anything?" The black alicorn asked.

"I find it strange that I have not seen him. Why didn't you tell me?" Celestia frowned as she turned to her younger sister.

"You were asleep, fair sister. And that whelp Chrysalis almost took over Canterlot." Luna answered. "Cadance and Shining Armor would have an idea."

"How do you know about this?"

"Both of them have witnessed his appearance in Canterlot and learned that thine human is not truly human at all. Shining Armor has sent to Twilight Sparkle a clue to who... or what this Crimson Edge is. Thine only problem being his whereabouts."

"Hmmm... Our late mother once told us stories of a dark being sealed in a statue, similar to Discord. I believe our... visitor is a shapeshifter, but is not a changeling. I have heard of those mystical foxes, and the tomes told of a pair of siblings separated by time and space." Celestia explained. "But I have a rather vague memory of our mother's friend. All I can remember about her would be her rough voice, but kind demeanor."

"Tia... do you still believe in humans?"

"Luna, of course I still believe in humans! We alicorns and the rest of everypony in this world are in a sense, successors to humans and demons, who once roamed the land. All of us are different, but we all share the same air, the same land, and our hearts and souls beat as one." The white alicorn was interrupted by a dark green flame and rolled up, revealing a scroll with a red ribbon tied around it. When she magically opened it, she read the contents patiently and slowly. The most important being the whereabouts of Crimson Edge... and unfortunately, said nothing about his appearance.

Celestia smiled, knowing the one called 'Crimson Edge' is alive and well... in Ponyville, upon finishing the letter and rolled it up, then nodded and trotted out of the library... after returning the tome to its proper place. Both older alicorns left and went their separate ways, returning to their duties...

* * *

_**Back in Ponyville...**_

_"Why did I bring onions with me again? I'm crying thanks to these things!" Crimson's eyes were tearing up as he took several bites and started walking as soon as he ate the entire thing. He didn't notice a butter yellow pegasus pony stare at him with innocent eyes._

___In his mind, the aptly named mare gracefully floated down to the black void with open wings and a serene look on her face. Several yellow orbs surrounded the mare and upon opening her eyes, the orbs flew out into several directions, revealing an expanse of grass at the edge of a forest. Upon trotting closer, the morning sun slowly appeared, accentuating her windswept pink mane._

Twilight trotted up to the unicorn stallion and tried waving a hoof over his face. After what seemed to be several moments, she turned to her friend and deadpanned, "I think you broke him."

"Did I? Oh... I'm sorry." Fluttershy averted her gaze and hid behind her mane.

"**CRIMSON!**" The librarian bellowed at the stallion, quickly prompting him to cover his ears. (Being a fox meant that he was able to hear things from far away, but at the same time be more sensitive to loud sounds.) _"WHAT DO YOU- Oh... I mean, you didn't have to shout at me like that!" He glared at Twilight. _

"Sorry, I had to DO something to snap you out. Are you okay?"

_"NO! I just saw one of the most beautiful mares nearby." CE averted his gaze and felt his face burn._

"Umm... what did you do?"

_"I think I just thought out loud. I mean... this isn't the first time I've done so. Anyway... my name is Na- I mean, Crimson Edge." He gave a hearty chortle and smiled warmly at the new mare. "And who would you be?" _

"Fluttershy... Braveheart..." Thebutter pegasus mare's voice was reduced to a near inaudible whisper and blushed a bit as she gave a bashful look and gave a small smile.

_"Meh, I can hear your whisper, but can you speak up a bit?" _

"My name's Fluttershy, Mr. Crimson." She gave a small squeak while smiling back at him.

_"You don't have to be formal with me, Fluttershy. And it's not like I can hurt you or anything. I mean... forget I said anything." CE blushed further and quickly averted his gaze. _

At the same time, Crimson felt an ominous presence upon returning to normal. But something was horribly wrong: his body froze and his eyes widened upon realizing what the presence was. He could feel someone hurting, as if that someone was being torn apart like someone destroying a book. A really precious book.

When she tried to bring him back to reality, the moment her hoof touched his shoulder, everything went as her body became engulfed in a purple aura; at the same time, a crimson aura emanated from the red unicorn stallion's body and both their eyes turned completely white...

* * *

Meanwhile, Shining Armor and Cadence were having a montage in Canterlot when the former stopped and felt his head pounding. His equine body suddenly filled with the same magenta aura that he shared with Twilight. Something was blatantly wrong when the white unicorn stallion felt a burning sensation in his chest.

"Cadence... what's... happening... to me!?" Shining Armor groaned as he clutched? his chest with his hoof. His face contorted and writhed a bit as he screamed and writhed in pain, as if every fiber of his being wanted to explode. "My head... my everything... GUUUURAAAAAGH!"

* * *

While all of that was happening in Equestria, a familiar half-human woman stood up and ominously walked outside of the house clad in her modern clothes. It was a pain she knew all too well and doubled over on the soft grass, clutching her chest while in a fetal position. Her face contorted in an agonizing fear and Scarlet found her like this, fearing for her adopted mother's life.

"Mama? Mama!" Scarlet trembled in fear as she could do nothing but watch her mother writhe in pain and hear her blood-curdling screams, draining all color from her face.

"Argh... My body... No... not again..." Akira grimaced as she felt her body pulsate an orange aura and heard her heart pound loudly, sensing a painful burning sensation. But then, she lost control and unleashed all of her pent up energy, filling the Mobian sky with a powerful orange pillar of light that turned the edge of the forest into white...

* * *

"Twilight...? Twilight?" Spike whimpered as Rarity violently shook Twilight Sparkle's shoulders. "What's wrong with her, Rarity?"

The purple dragon and the butter yellow pegasus could do nothing but fall down and kneel helplessly as their friends were in some kind of trance. Rainbow Dash and the Apple siblings(sans Big Mac) came over as soon as they could and quavered in fear when their eyes locked on to the two unicorns.

"I don't like where this is going, guys." RD gulped in fear and turned to Fluttershy with a hesitant look. "Whatever it is you did to Crimson, I blame you for this."

"Sis... are they gonna be alright?" Applebloom looked up at her older sister.

"Everything's gonna be alright, Applebloom..." AJ reassured her younger sister by nuzzling her and turned to the white unicorn mare. "S-s-sugahcube? W-w-what happened?"

"Everypony? It's official." Rarity stepped back after another unsuccessful attempt.

"What?" Both RD and AJ asked.

"Equestria... is offficially unmade..." The white mare quavered.

Everyone near Twilight and Crimson could only watch helplessly as their friends became engulfed in a blinding white light that covered the rest of Ponyville and would eventually spread to the rest of the world. Fluttershy could only look fearfully at the two and cry, feeling responsible for what happened...

=Chapter 2 End=

* * *

Finally, that took awhile to make. For the record, I'm not doing this for the reviews: I'm doing this because I have ideas in my head. Nazou/Daichi/Crimson Edge here tends to eat onions whenever he thinks of something sad and switches to Neighponese/Japanese when embarrassed. The history bit in Celestia's scenario is definitely a massive reference to my OC's, and the ending of this chapter destroyed all my hopes for a light-hearted story. And I tried my best to write Luna's Shakespearean English and Applejack's Southern accent as accurately as physically possible.


	3. WARNING: Severe Mood Whiplash

When Twilight Sparkle woke up, the first thing she found was that instead of hooves, she had hands. Where her normal coat should be, a purple sweatervest and a preppy-style skirt covered her tan skin. She was barefoot and had long, sapphire blue hair with violet and brilliant rose streaks. Everything was deathly bright and could make out three human-like figures. The erm, formerly female unicorn stood up and limped towards a familiar figure.

Some time has passed, and the figure closest to her had the same colored hair, but his streaks were cerulean and phalto blue and wore the uniform of the Canterlot Royal Guard and white pants along with sapphire blue shoes. In addition to that, he had a slightly lighter skin tone than her and didn't move. TS called out his name a couple times as she limped closer to him. When the man stirred, he was slightly groggy and became surprised with his human form, especially with the wedding ring on his right hand.

"Twi... Twily?" Shining Armor weakly asked. "What... happened to us? A-are we dead?"

"Looks like... we're both okay." The younger Sparkle answered. "C'mon, let's look for Cadence and Crimson."

The older Sparkle nodded as the two wandered the white space and eventually found their cutie marks in the form of small badges on the right side of their clothes. They eventually found an unconscious pale-skinned, dark-violet haired young woman with rose and pale gold streaks along with pink wings. She was clad in a sleeveless pink dress and had gold shoes; upon an even closer look would have to be a wedding ring on her right hand and this was apparently Cadence's human form. When the formerly pink alicorn woke up, she stirred and opened her eyes to the sound of her husband's voice.

"Uhhhnn... is that you, Shining Armor?" The former alicorn groaned. "What in the name of Celestia just happened?"

"Take a look, honey." The older Sparkle deadpanned. "Looks like we're not in our usual forms anymore. Can you fly?"

Cadence got back up on her feet and stood up, flapped her wings a bit and briefly hovered above the ground for a moment. It was so familiar and yet so new, as she felt light as a feather while on the air. When she descended to the ground, it was still as bright as the white sky itself and started walking. Sometime has passed since the Equestrians found each other and no words were uttered as the experience nearly drained the magical energy out of the two and they started walking now that the Sparkle siblings regained their energy. Finally, the three stopped walking due to exhaustion and watched as a new figure walked weakly and as it went closer, the figure turned out to be a female half-human brunette with red highlights. She wore an white shirt and a pair of black shorts along with an open thick red jacket, three brown, white-tipped tails barely above her shorts and a pair of shoes with a custom design. When she came closer, she had golden yellow eyes and two fang-like marks on the right side of her face. The half-human cringed as she clutched her arm and limped closer to the Equestrians and finally collapsed due to exhaustion.

Both former unicorns took the chance to catch her before she fell and the half-human woman weakly smiled as the two set her down gently on the floor.

"Where... am I? Am I dead... yet?" The woman asked.

"No, you're okay." Twilight shook her head. "What's your name?"

"Hayashi... Akira... I would have to assume that you three met my... older brother, Nazou."

"What happened to you, Akira?"

"I only remember... watching the moon after tucking my kids to bed and heard an ominous voice in my head telling me to go outside... When I did, I found myself writhing in pain and unleashed my energy." Akira answered. "Who... who the heck are you three?"

"I'm... Twilight Sparkle. The guy next to me is my older brother, Shining Armor and Cadence is my sister-in-law."

"Newlyweds... I suppose you want answers to your questions about why you're here as a human and not as a unicorn... And why you wanted to know why my brother ended up in your world."

"How did you know that?" Cadence finally spoke up. "Do you know anything, Akira?"

"We half-humans have extremely limited psychic powers in the form of mind-reading and telekinesis. This white space... apparently forces anyone into a human form and my brother was sent into your world because of my timebird, Enzo." Akira explained with one eye open. "I came from a time where fear, hatred and suffering were the law... and am descended from a clan of humans with sealing abilities along with a cursed demon fox clan. Hmph, they were right: I was born a monster, and always will be."

"No you're not!" Shining Armor retorted.

"You wouldn't know that if you knew something about me!" The half-human snapped, despite her injury. "I remember Crimson End, that ill-fated day that I practically destroyed the human race out of revenge against losing my family in front of my eyes. I was only ten years old and became a living weapon, feared by many. You wouldn't know... because all you knew was peace... All I wanted was absolution for what I did, and now, I regret everything I've done. All I've known in the pathetic existence I call my life was fear, hatred and suffering. There was no hope for anyone at all... I-"

"Please, don't say anymore." Cadence interrupted after staring intently at the half-human woman's sorrowful eyes and clasped her hands. "So, please... don't beat yourself up. Even though you say that you're alone, you're not. You have your family... and your friends." By the time she ran out of words to say, the formerly pink alicorn was tearing up.

"I'm sorry for that... I truly am... seeing as you're talking in front of the Three-Tailed Demon..." Akira chuckled a bit and cracked a small smile. "I would be surprised if at least one pony has heard of me."

"Auntie Celestia has heard of you." The former alicorn dried her tears and smiled. "But... why are you called the 'Three-Tailed Demon'?"

"You don't want to know."

"So, you're not human?" Twilight asked. "How old are you?"

"As I have said before, Nazou and I are half-humans. On a technical note, I'm five thousand three hundred twenty three years old. But my physical age is twenty-three." Akira answered. "At one point, he was born in a time where demons and something called Lunarians existed."

"You mean ponies lived on the moon?"

"They're more human-like in appearance, Twilight. I swear, you're an egghead like my daughter. You and her would get along."

"You have a daughter? Is she human like you?"

"Yeah, but she's not human. She's a fox... that my husband adopted sometime ago. Misaki-chan's a nurse and a mechanic and you're a lieberian." The half-human shook her head and frowned. "Cadence, was it? How did you know about me?"

"My aunt Celestia told stories about you while Aunt Luna would roll her eyes in disbelief." Cadence chuckled. "Her father and mother told stories of somepony based on your appearance who recreated the Earth with only a wish to create a world where peace and harmony existed. And you may have created the Elements of Harmony."

"Celestia, huh? I haven't heard that name in a while-" Akira muttered.

"Do you know Auntie Celestia?"

"Nope. I don't know a thing about- Anyway, I can't be THAT powerful, Cadence! Your aunts remind me a lot of myself and my sister whenever my late grandmother told us stories about a certain moon rabbit/fairy. _**Time in one world works differently in another and your form varies by the world you're in. **_Oh, and tell Nazou I'm gonna nuke his existence."

Everyone chuckled at the comment and the older Sparkle finally spoke. "Wait, you're gonna do what now?"

"I find it hard to believe that he's my older brother and in his own words, 'I'm one of those people that he can't live with or without.' I only have a small stash of tofu and he somehow manages to steal my stash and hoard 'em to himself. If he steals anymore of my tofu..." Akira growled and stepped backward as she exploded and burst in flames while screaming angrily, scaring the Sparkle family; she quickly calmed down after that. "Hmph. I thought I had deja vu. Scared a moon rabbit in the same way."

"I think I'm going to keep quiet now so we can finally look for Crimson." Shining Armor quickly replied, his face paled in fear.

"His real name's Daisuke and I call him Nazou out of choice."

"What!? How was I supposed to know?"

"You know now, genius." The half-human woman shot daggers at the older Sparkle.

"I've never met somepony so scary in my entire life." Twilight whispered to her brother's ear.

"I agree with you, Twily." SA agreed. "Wonder why she's always blunt, grumpy and angry most of the time?"

"What was that!?" Several anger marks suddenly appeared on the half-human woman's forehead.

"NOTHING!" The Sparkle siblings shouted out of surprise.

At this time, teh party of four walked aimlessly, searching for Nazou/Crimson Edge with Akira as a guide of sorts. Suddenly, she stopped and her ears twitched. Within moments, a familiar aura could be sensed: it HAD to be the man himself. When the party of four ran to him, he was injured and the Hayashi siblings suddenly felt an ominous presence; the female half-human assumed a feralish pose and growled.

"Saigonotatakai ga chikai... Fukanzen... bakemono." [The final battle is near... incomplete... monster.] The voice chuckled a bit.

"Rgh, show yourself!" Akira shouted angrily.

"Mio Akuma wa densetsu, anata no owari wa chikai." [Legenday Three-Tailed Demon, your end is near.] The voice continued. "Anata... sosen no yūjō kara umarekawaru sekai wa... mugen no yami no shita ni kieru." [The world reborn from your ancestor's friendship will vanish under the infinite darkness.]

In response, a formless dark void manifested into an armored swordsman and slashed at the half-human woman, prompting her to block his attack; any more and it wouldn't end well for Nazou/Crimson.

"Cadence, remember when you asked why you wanted to know why I got my title?" The half-demon turned to the former alicorn. "I suppose now would be a good demonstration."

"What do you mean by that?" Shining Armor asked.

"I've been under the darkness as long as I can remember, and the people I met along my journey helped me out so that I won't succumb and destroy the world that I held dear. All those people I destroyed, all those humans I killed out of hatred that wasn't my own... I wished for a world where humans can co-exist peacefully with anyone. Just like what the moon fairy wished along with me in my dream."

"What are you talking about, Akira?"

Before she could answer anything, the half-human stood in the way between Nazou/Crimson, the Sparkle family and the formless swordsman with arms wide, knowing its intention.

"Get Cadence and Twilight and run as far away as possible!" Akira's voice softened as she struggled with her words. "I... I'll deal with him... myself!"

"What about you?" Shining Armor asked apprehensively. "Aren't you going to come with us?"

"No... I'm used to this sort of thing already. I've been through many things that can kill a normal human. He's too dangerous for you guys to handle!"

"Listen, I'm not the kind of pony who would run from something like this. So what if I'm mortal? I don't care. If it means sacrificing myself so that my sister and wife would live and my country to be safe, then that's because I love my family." The older Sparkle shook his head and answered.

Unfortunately, both Twilight and Cadence were hit by a dark blast in response and ended up becoming immobilized in two gigantic black orbs. Shining Armor and Akira could only watch helplessly as the two mares/women that he cared about the most had their life forces being sucked out of them, screaming in agonizing pain; the formless swordsman laughing as he swatted the older Sparkle aside, forcing him into unconsciousness with a swing of his magic.

"First humans, now ponies!?" The younger Hayashi growled as she shouted angrily. "You've gone off the deep end this time. I sorta understand that you hate humans, but why them? They didn't do anything!"

The formless swordsman laughed derisively and apathetically as he answered, "Humans alone are not enough, fox! But I thank you for advancing at least part of my plans. After the Equestrians are dealt with, the Mobians are next. Neo-Queen Serenity herself was a royal fool who could do nothing save for weakening me by turning my body into stone. Eternal night is nothing: The end of everything is near."

"You hurt innocent ponies... You hurt my brother... And you dissed Tsukino-san... I won't forgive you for that." Akira calmed down a bit as she looked down, her eyes concealing the rage in her voice. "I may not remember everything that's going on, but... I promised Tsukino-san that I would protect BOTH the Earth and everyone in it..._** Rgh... RAAAAAAGH!**_"

Finally provoked, the half-human mustered(heh, mustard) her pent-up rage and exploded, freeing Twilight and Cadence from their prison, ableit weakened from the ordeal; the alicorn finally had her question answered; the result was a nuke the size of the Moon and the "force of a thousand suns.", to be concise. The sheer magnitude of the aura emanating from her body filled the white space with apprehension. Akira dashed towards the formless swordsman and suddenly appeared behind, taking it by surprise and unleashed a combo of powerful light-speed sword slashes followed by a massive barrage of armor-breaking punches. Unfortunately, none of her attacks worked and she gained another near-death experience in the form of a seemingly non-lethal injury on her entire body and reverted back to normal.

Both Twilight and Cadence could do nothing but watch helplessly as their half-human ward was beaten up to a point where she is almost unable to stand. It was even more shocking in the sense that their half-human ward was engulfed in a calming green light that pulsated for a moment and spread in the form of a healing shockwave that restored their magical energies and life forces as a response from earlier; the Sparkle Family (and Nazou) found themselves bathed in a blue light and started to fade.

"W-what's happening!?" The younger Sparkle shouted with fear in her voice.

"It really IS too dangerous for anyone else to stay here. I'm gonna stay here to keep him busy, and you four will go back to Equestria." Akira grunted as she charged up her energy. "You and your brother won't be able to regain consciousness for sometime and at this point, Nazou's knocked out. Finally, you won't be able to remember any of this at all."

"But, I'm glad that we were able to meet you, Akira Hayashi." Cadence nodded as she smiled. "Even if it's for a little bit."

"The doors of the past shall open to those with a heart of gold and a soul of silver." The half-human gave a wide grin, looking back at the two and chuckled. By now, Nazou and Shining Armor have vanished in the blue light, and it is almost time for Twilight and Cadence to leave. "We'll meet again, and I die hard."

Her voice echoed as the two were engulfed in a blue light and the white space blacked out...

* * *

**Sweet Apple Acres**

There were many voices and the ground felt rocky and bumpy at the same time. One of them sounded energetic and random with no apparent sense of seriousness whatsoever. Another voice had a Southern accent with a tone of worry and admonished the first one. The third voice, being mature, dramatic and slightly snobbish shared the same tone of worry. All the voices were loud and noisy, so the purple unicorn mare finally woke up to the sound and found herself in Applejack's bed, surrounded by the Stetson-wearing orange mare, the fashionista and the baker.

"What happened..." Twilight groaned and the first thing she saw were hooves. "Where am I?"

"Easy there, sugahcube." Applejack restrained the librarian and shook her head. "Ahm glad that you're okay, but..."

"But what?" The purple mare sensed hesitation in her friend's voice.

"Crimson's still down fer the count, Twi."

"So, he's dead?"

"Ahm not too sure, sugahcube."

"Why weren't you here, Pinkie?" Rarity asked. "Equestria was unmade while you were gone."

"I come back from visiting my family's rock farm and this happens!? And you met a pony that's not really a pony at all but actually a half-human?" The pink Earth pony countered. "Wow. Someone needs a niiice... big... hug! And needs to smile more."

[Pinkie Pie... Do you really think that?] The voice asked.

"Yeah. Isn't this supposed to be all light-hearted or something?"

[It WAS supposed to be light-hearted. But anyway, thanks a lot.]

"Anytime, HB DS." Pinkie looked up at the ceeling.

"Who are you talking to, Pinkie?" Twilight asked.

"Oh, just the author of this thing... She seriously needs to lighten up. And telling me what to say while this is going on."

[Pinkie Pie... Now ISN'T a good time to be breaking the fourth wall!] HB DS growled.

"Sorry." Pinkie smiled at the ceeling. "Did you have tacos?"

[Yes, no meat. Just lemme finish and you're NOT the only one that can do this, ya know... Anymore and you're gonna be Deadpool-bad.]

"But-"

[ZIP IT!]

The energetic baker was being annoying and had her mouth shut for the time being; her voice came out to be muffled. But then, the librarian slowly jumped off the bed and suddenly slumped, prompting Rarity and Applejack to catch her fall.

"It felt so real! Cadence and I being trapped in the darkness, Shining Armor being hurt by it, and Crimson's unconscious body... The horror... The horror of it all..." The librarian shuddered and struggled to keep conscious. "Argh! To make it worse, there's also a voice telling me that the 'doors to the past shall open to those with a heart of gold and soul of silver.' What does it all mean!?"

While this was happening, Applejack's paled when she turned around to the bed and found it empty, her mouth agape at the bed... and the closed window. The look on her face revealed that he simply vanished and knew that unicorns can teleport, but not in a stealthy manner. Pinkie FINALLY managed to regain her speaking ability due to having hers temporarily shut; Rarity noticed that the door was open and sensed a familiar presence that wasn't there at the same time, prompting the others to follow. When the four left the house, instead of an orchard of apple trees, there was a forest of cherry blossoms surrounding Sweet Apple Acres. Granny Smith, Big Mac and Applebloom were awestruck by the slow, falling leaves and the calming wind...

"Applejack... since when did we plant new trees?" Applebloom asked.

"Ah don't 'member plantin' any none." The orange mare replied. "What's with Granny Smith an' Big Mac?"

"Hoooh, whee! Leaves a-fallin', wind a-blowin..." Granny Smith chuckled. "Come along, lil' doggies! We're havina... havina..." She snored before she could finish.

"Eeyup." Big Mac flatly answered.

"Such grace... Such beauty... Is this... a dream?" Rarity wondered. "What do you think, Pinkie?"

"Cherry blossoms." Pinkie mumbled as gave an awestruck face.

"What?"

"Cherry blossoms. I heard they only bloom once a year in the spring. Then they wither beautifully and gracefully." The baker quickly turned to her friends and giggled. "They're normally seen in Neighpon, and they're the only place with these works of art. My family's rock farm is far away from here, though."

_"So, did you like it?" A voice suddenly asked. _

The cherry blossoms turned back into apple trees and everypony turned around, surprised that the voice came from a certain unicorn stallion, who came along with Ditzy Doo, both holding a saddlebag full of random muffins.

"How did you do that?" Applebloom looked up in wonder.

_"Fox magic." Crimson replied. "I first used my fox magic to distract you guys so I won't be noticed. Then while everypony in AJ's room weren't lookin', I teleported outta Sweet Apple Acres and met Derpy, er, uh-"_

"It's Ditzy." Ditzy Doo corrected. "Wow... I found me a rival. Wait, how is it that you're a unicorn and you can't use basic unicorn magic?"

_"Uhhh... heh." The unicorn stallion sheepishly chuckled. "Least I managed to distract everypony long enough for me to get some muffins. I'm starved!" _

"Is it me, or is your saddlebag filled with lots and lots of muffins?"

_"What? I'm a big eater... and I'm still trying to get my hooves away from onions." Crimson deadpanned. _

Granny Smith woke up, slightly startled by the sight of apple trees and coughed a bit. "What in tarnation... Hey, sonny?"

_"Uhh, yeah?" _

"What yer a-sayin is you have fox magic over yonder? Are you sure yer not one of those mystical foxes in disguise?" The green senior asked.

_"Nope. I just know how to use fox magic, ma'am. What are you talkin' bout? Mystical foxes? Pfft! As if." _

"Anyway... I should be going back to work, Crimson." Ditzy nodded and flew away. "See ya."

_"See ya, Ditzy!" _

It was weird how Crimson used his illusions to distract everypony just so he could grab a bite. Something tells me he's-

"Heya, what' cha doin'?" Pinkie asked the ceiling.

[I'm trying TO narrate here! Don't you have something else to do?] HB DS asked.

"Have any ideas?"

[NO! I'm getting annoyed and I'm NOT gonna tell you, Pinkie.]

* * *

_**The Other Side of the Fourth Wall**_

Unfortunately, before I could get any ideas, Pinkie Pie magically teleports out of the screen, literally breaking the fourth wall and appeared in front of me.

"So~ you must be HB DS..." Pinkie Pie muttered. "Did you read Cupcakes?"

**[No. I can't handle Cupcakes. What are YOU doing here!? I've got a story to advance, y'know!]**

"Hey! You hurt Twilight Sparkle and her brother. " The pink mare stared angrily after reading the script.

**[And how!?]**

"Make it less painful for her or something!? You know how I can be with-"

**[Uhhh... I know how scary your dark side can be! I'll try to make it better or at least more light-hearted. I'm sorry!]**

"Alright, I forgive you." Pinkie sighed.

**[You should really get back to your side of the fourth wall, Pinkie. Or else I won't be able to advance the story. At all. No, really. If I can't advance the story, I blame you for this: I have a job to do.] **

"Oh, alright. Send me back."

One moment later, the pink mare was sent back to the fanfic and the last thing I want happening is a short fanfic with a dark ending.

* * *

_**Sweet Apple Acres**_

"D' ya think that... those mythical foxes exist, sis?" Applebloom piped up.

"This is something Fluttershy would know 'bout. After all, she has an idea of what they are." Applejack explained. "Speakin' a which, why don'cha play with Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle? I got me apples tah buck."

"If ya need me... I'll be nappin in me chair." Granny Smith wheezed and slowly walked away with Big Mac.

An awkward silence filled Sweet Apple Acres as the three unicorns looked around and a howling wind blew in response. To break this strange moment, a loud ding was seen in the sky and a round, yellow thing crashed into the dirt and bounced a bit before regaining its balance. The thing turned out to be a small, round, yellow headband-toting chick and looked up at the unicorns.

"What happened?" Rarity gave a confused look as she stared down at the bird.

The bird cheeped and tilted its head in response.

_"Enzo..." Crimson growled. "Why are you here THIS time!?"_

Enzo jumped in place a couple times as it chirped, then clicked its tongue. Still incensed about what happened the previous day, the unicorn stallion lowered his head enough for the cute chick to hop on his head and its eyes glowed white for a moment. The bird hopped out of Crimson's mane and flew back to the ground.

Guessing by the sound of the chirping, the unicorn stallion listened intently to its chirps, silently translating it to words.

_"Is Akira alright?" The stallion asked. _

Enzo chirped sadly and noticed the massive quiver on its back; Rarity magically obtained the scroll and tried to read it. Unfortunately, like Twilight tried with the first letter the other day, Crimson groaned softly and translated the contents. As his eyes read the letter, the pale look on his face made it clear that there was little to no hope for defeating the enemy. Silence filled the farm once again, and the stallion looked down, his eyes concealed by his mane.

"What's wrong, Crimson?" Twilight inquired.

_"I don't like where this is going. She's alive, but not dead either. I really have gotten more than I bargained for. I was hoping that I would regain my magical energy in three days, but... it's gonna take much longer now." Crimson answered as he turned to the unicorn mares. "And it also mentions an alicorn who goes by 'Solar Flare'." _

"Crimson, dear, do you have a problem with this bird?" Rarity interrupted.

_"Yes, Rarity. I believe so." The stallion replied as he gave a death glare, shooting daggers at the chick. "Meet Enzo, my kid sister's pet chick. On the outside, she looks like an ordinary bird, but she's actually been around since the days of the Future Silver Millennium." _

"Silver Millennium? Were ponies around during that time?" The white mare asked.

_"Nope. But~ there were humans with magical powers called Lunarians... and protected the Earth for at least ten centuries. One of them in particular was a blonde moon fairy who ruled the planet as a fair monarch. Yes, she IS powerful-"_

"Even more so than Princess Celestia?"

_"Who's Princess Celestia?" _

"Have you been living in a rock!?" Rarity cried. "Princess Celestia IS one of the co-rulers of Equestria along with her younger sister, Princess Luna. Her Solar Majesty cares about everypony despite being of royalty. And her niece is Mi Amore Cadenza-"

_"You mean Can- erm, Cadence? And she mentioned you, Twilight." Crimson interrupted. "Anything goin' on?"_

"Oh, she's my sister-in-law." Twilight answered.

_"A-HA! I knew it!" The stallion cried. "You ARE related to Shining Armor. Seeing as you are related to the captain of the Canterlot Royal Guard, you would probably use that to arrest me or something. Plus, you have a possibility of being related to your monarchs by marriage." _

"Enough about me, you were telling us about a tangent about the queen of the Future Silver Millennium." The purple mare groaned.

_"Right. Anyway, she's powerful... and a bit goofy. But she means well." He explained as he looked up at the clouds. "Neo-Queen Serenity was technically human, but wasn't at the same time. She was actually reincarnated from a princess who lived ON the moon at a time when everyone had a hard time getting along. In addition, when I think about it, she reminds me somewhat of Princess Luna's sister." _

"You mean Princess Celestia?"

_"Uh-huh." The unicorn stallion nodded. "Now that I think about it, prior to being sealed for the second time, I became an honorary Knight charged with protecting the planet from the enemy."_

"Do you know anything about the enemy?"

_"You're lucky he's still imprisoned. The enemy, as far as I know, started it all. He cursed my clan, turned my kid sister into a living weapon, killed my sort-of younger sister and my brother-in-law, and is currently a massive threat against anything that humans hold dear. Last time I saw him, I managed to seal him full power, and I had to pay the price in the form of my body. Second time that happened, with a certain pink-haired half-human friend of mine, the enemy was severely weakened with the **power of love, friendship and THE MOON! **His last form was apparently an ethereal warrior in a dark cloak."  
_

"The same one in my nightmare..."

_"Something tells me you saw him already. Are you alright?" _

"Y-yeah. Anyway, I think it's time Rarity and I went back to work-" Twilight nervously chuckled.

_"But you're a lieberian. And it's not like you have everypony visiting your liebery on a frequent basis." Crimson replied as he lowered his head enough for Enzo to come in and turned to the mares. "Think it's time I went and looked around Ponyville for a bit." _

And so everyone went their separate ways, the timebird Enzo looked down at her owner's brother and chirped sadly.

_"I forgive you, Enzo." The unicorn stallion looked up and cracked a smile. "It's high time that we should hang out and get to know each other better."_

Enzo chirped happily as she bounced on the stallion's head and jumped off, flying in place like a hummingbird. Crimson paled upon knowing what she's going to do and the timebird teleported away before he could do anything.  
AN:Enzo, I blame you for this. *frowns* I swear, I don't want "Cupcake" Pinkie to come in at this moment. *gulp*

* * *

**_Meanwhile, in Canterlot... [Shining Armor FPV]_**

_The last thing I can remember before being knocked out was trying to persuade that woman to come with us. Unfortunately, I can't remember much else, but her voice sounded a lot like she's angry at many things, but at the same time, she's not a bad person. What unnerved me was her golden-yellow eyes. I don't think I've seen anyone with that eyes like that. As if something's always burning inside. And I can feel somepony nuzzling me. _

_When I came to, all I saw was... a typical... hospital room. Wait... firm bed, soft pillow, worrisome voice... it's the Canterlot Royal Hospital. And Cadence was sitting next to me. My experience in that white space, it felt so real, but at the same time, it's not. _

"I was so worried about you, Shining Armor!" Cadence cried. "What happened to you?"

_"I had a dream that Twily and I were humans, and we met this half-human woman. She said that Crimson's actually her older brother, and they've been fighting this evil force for a long time. You were there, too. I even had the unfortunate experience of seeing the both of you hurt." _

"I... I was hurt? How?" The pink alicorn asked.

_"You and Twiliy... trapped in a dark void... it felt so cold and had death all over. Both of you were screaming in pain, in agony... and I couldn't do anything." I stopped and tried to get out of my bed, but my body hurt enough that I couldn't move much. I can tell that my injury won't let me back to work and I sighed to my eternal dismay. _

"You mentioned something about a half-human woman. Do you know what she looks like? Or sound like, at least?"

_"She had these two fang-like marks on her right cheek and had golden-yellow eyes. If there's one thing I've learned from her, she can be rude. But she means well... I think." I answered. "How long was I out?" _

"You were out since yesterday, honey." Cadence gave a warm smile.

_The room was quiet for a long time, until I heard the door open and watched as Princess Celestia silently walked in with her natural flowing mane and tail. How they move while she's not is a complete mystery to me. _

"I take it you are alright, Shining Armor?" The white alicorn calmly asked.

_"Yes, Your Majesty." I replied. "Do you know any half-human women... out of curiosity?" _

"Can you tell me what this half-human looks like?"

_"This half-human woman was clad in strange attire, and she had a semi-spiky brown and red mane. In addition, she also has golden-yellow eyes, a pair of fang-like marks on her right cheek. It was strange that she has fox ears and three tails. Oh, and she has a rough-sounding voice with a hint of kindness." _

Celestia's face paled at the description the white stallion told of; it was unnerving to see the normally calm alicorn shaking with slight fear.

"Auntie, are you okay?" The pink alicorn asked.

"It can't be... I was only a filly the last time I saw her..." The white alicorn's eyes shrank for a moment and calmed down by closing her eyes. "I never thought I would hear of her again."

_"Do you know her, Your Majesty?" I asked. _

"You could say that... she was a friend of my mother. Seeing as Captain Armor will be unable to work for some time, I can tell you all I know about her."

_**[Flashback, Celestia's Memories]**_

"Mother, what's wrong?" I asked.

"I'm afraid I won't be able to be with you for a few days." A kind voice answered. "Until I come back, you will be with a foalsitter."

"Awww... can't I stay with you?"

"Trust me on this, 'Celly. This foalsitter is a good friend of mine."

"Mother, what does the new foalsitter look like?" I looked up, as my mane and tail moved on its own.

"It's a surprise. But she won't bite." The voice came from a silver alicorn with a fiery mane and tail. I was disappointed that she would be gone for awhile, but she nuzzled me goodbye and left.

However, sometime has passed and a strange bipedal creature was seen from the distance. When the creature walked closer to me, she looked down at my face and didn't smile.

"You must be Solar Flare's daughter..." The rough voice came from a semi-spiky haired young woman in typical human attire.

"Y-yeah. W-who are you?" I whimpered a bit.

"My name... is Akira. And you are?" The young woman replied.

"Celestia."

"Are you scared of me?"

"Sorta. Did I do anything to you, Akira?"

"No, you didn't do anything." The woman shook her head and sat down. "You have the same coat and the same aura as Solar Flare."

"Aura?"

"Every life form has a special field of energy exclusive to their own. But it can't be seen with normal eyes." My foalsitter explained. "When you see someone's aura, it feels very much like an extension of a soul."

"...Oh. What's with your ears? And why do you have three-tails?" I asked.

"I've always had fox ears and three-tails. And I've never questioned why. I'm different from most humans, and... I don't remember why. And yeah, I'm half-human."

I decided not to question her and stood up, trotting along as she stood up and walked and took in the surroundings. I wondered what was it that gave her a reason not to smile. But before I could think of anymore, without looking, she answered, "You're wondering why I don't smile... and I read your mind."

"How did you- does it have to do with your eyes?" I asked.

"To a certain extent. But you wouldn't want to know what I went through, seeing as you're a kid, erm, foal." My foalsitter frowned a bit. "I don't want to give traumatizing nightmares to a certain alicorn."

It sounded strange and her words caused me to chuckle, and I ended up falling on the floor laughing.

"Un? What's so funny?" Akira blushed upon realizing her words. "Oh... great. Uhhh..."

"Awww, you look cute when your face goes red like that." I wiped the tears off my face with my hoof and sighed deeply.

"It's called blushing. Agh, what is this place, paradise!?"

"Yes?" I gave a questioning look and burst into laughter.

"How old are you, Celestia?"

"I must be a couple of months, and I'm a filly. How old ARE you?"

"In human years, I'm currently 18... and in equine years, three. Something tells me that alicorns must live much longer than humans. So that makes me a mare... I think?" My foalsitter gave a confused look and looked down at her hands, I think they were called and counted on them. "I heard you can move the sun?"

"Nuh-uh. I can't do that yet. But I want to. Do you have a cutie mark?" I asked.

"The heck is that 'posed to be?"

"It's that mark on your flank that somepony gets after discovering his or her special talent. I think those marks on your face are your cutie mark." I smiled at her, hoping for a response.

"The marks on my face? No, they're not. But they've always been with me since I was born." Akira smiled and chuckled. "Unfortunately, every now and then, it would disappear, leaving me blank for a couple nights. "Anyway, don't you have any sisters?"

"Not yet." I shook my head. "What about you?"

My foalsitter turned away and I could already sense an air of sadness around her. I looked on as she took a couple steps away from me and sat down, staring at the sky and shook her head.

"Urgh... sorry. I don't remember. Don't you have somekinda castle that you live in or something?" The half-human asked.

"It's over at that... field... oh, no. How far have we been?" I whimpered.

"Don't look at me. I can't believe I agreed to be your foalsitter... not that I have any problems with you or anything. But... I have a bad sense of direction, heh."

"WHAT!? Ohhhh..." I groaned. "Race back home?"

"Sure-" Akira nodded and facepalmed, upon realizing that I had my wings to help me out. "Hey, that's not cool!"

Even though my wings were a bit small, it still provided the wingpower needed to outfly her. Before long, she was only a speck in the distance behind me. I spoke too soon when I saw something on the corner of my eye: a large brown, three-tailed, golden-eyed fox running right behind me. What surprised me were the things on its forepaws. They seem to resemble a pair of rings near the paws and above them are a pair of strange armor resembling chains. My wings pushed hard against the wind, and my horn served to separate the gusts of wind, as if my entire being flew with the wind.

It wasn't long until the fox and I reached the castle grounds and when I flapped my wings and landed, the fox stopped and burst into flames, transforming into my foalsitter. I gaped at that moment, and exclaimed, "Nopony should be able to burst into flames and live!? Only phoenixes can do that!"

"You are right, 'Celly. Your foalsitter is the mystical Three-Tailed Demon." A voice calmly replied.

"Mother!? Then..." I gasped and stared at my foalsitter with complete shock. "How did you-"

"I was half-expecting her dark side to manifest itself. But it seems that the Elements of Harmony neutralized the darkness imbued within." The voice came from a silver-coated, fiery-maned alicorn. "Isn't that right, Akira?"

"I would have to agree with Celestia in the sense of how did you know who I was!? Nobody SHOULD BE ABLE to know about my existence!" My foalsitter answered with complete surprise.

"Oh, but I did. Friends don't keep secrets from each other, even if the secrets themselves are weighted with destiny." Solar Flare replied. "Your secret is safe with me, Akira. How was it?"

"Mother, she was scary at first, but as the day went by, I got to know her a bit. But she's too serious!" I answered.

"Akira, why don't you lighten up a little bit?" The fiery alicorn chuckled. "You managed to learn a thing or two from 'Celly. She is going to gain her cutie mark soon enough... whatever that would be."

"Gimme a break, Trolar Flare!" Akira grumbled. "Anyway, I believe it's almost sunset, and it was nice foalsitting. Unfortunately, due to the temporal differences, I doubt that I would be able to see you again."

"Really?" I asked.

"We'll see each other again... Trollestia. I promise you."

"Wha- HEY!" I glared at my foalsitter, who has just stepped through the portal. "Awww..."

_**[Flashback End]**_

* * *

_**Canterlot Royal Hospital, Room 201 [Omniscient TPV]**_

"And that is how I met her for the first time... and gained the rather strange moniker of 'Trollestia'." Celestia finished and sighed to her eternal disdain. "On an occasional basis, Luna would refer to me as a troll."

"You knew about this and didn't anypony else?" Cadence asked.

"The last time I saw her was the same time our memories of each other were locked away and she vanished among the stars." The white alicorn nodded. "Now, what is this about Crimson?"

"Auntie... we should have told you this in the first place, but never had a chance to. The truth is... Crimson's not really a pony. He's also a half-human." The pink alicorn.

"Under thine light of the moon, awaken the elder from thine slumber; under eternal darkness, the younger rages. The gates of time shall open to those with a heart of gold and a soul of silver..." Celestia wondered and suddenly gave a serious face. "Anyway... I trust that you won't hurt yourself as soon as the hospital releases you, Captain Armor?"

"No, Your Majesty!" Shining Armor quickly looked around and cringed at the thought.

At this, the white alicorn left, leaving the couple to themselves. At the same time, a round bird just appeared out of nowhere and flew around the couple and landed on Shining Armor's head. The bird chirped happily and bounced around, attracting the couple's attention.

"Oh... uh, hi." Cadence greeted the bird. "What's your name?"

The bird chirped while on the white unicorn stallion's head in an excited manner, annoying him to his disdain. Then she stopped and her eyes turned white, giving the two the image of a familiar person, but unconscious on the ground, presumably unable to wake up from the intense pain.

"I can't understand you. All I have is a Pony to Human translation spell. Only Earth ponies... and a certain pegasus can understand animals."

"Are you thinking of visiting Ponyville?" The white stallion asked.

"Yeah..." The white alicorn gave an impish look and a sunny smile. Which changed into a death glare. "Don't you DARE hurt yourself while I'm gone, Shining Armor. I mean it!"

"Oh, alright. I'll stay. It's not like I can teleport out of here anyway."

Enzo left Shining Armor's head and flapped near the door and nodded, prompting Cadence to ask about teleportation. Despite the language barrier, the timebird can understand the alicorn's body language and charged up its energy with a white aura. One moment later, the two were engulfed in a light-blue aura and disappeared.

* * *

_**Ponyville Park?**_

Crimson found himself to be immensely hungry and grabbed the first muffin after setting down his saddlebag on the grass. He took large bites as he stuffed them in his equine mouth in a ravenous manner, eventually devouring them all and started scarfing down his food from his hammerspace, most of which are fresh when he first obtained them. Unfortunately, the last things that were left from his hammerspace were a basket of onions and a bottle of hot sauce made from the spiciest chilli pepper in existence; obtained during a certain onion-eating contest.

_"I've never eaten THIS much in a while. Anyway, I'm glad I inherited my appetite from Mom." The unicorn stallion thought to himself. "Man, this is so good! I should buy me a four baker's dozens worth-" _

His thoughts were cut short as Pinkie finally appeared, staring at him. The pink mare tilted her head as she waited patiently for the unicorn stallion to finish eating.

"Can I call you Crimsie? Or Edgey? Can I? Can I? Can I!?" The bubbly mare bounced happily in place.

_"Sure... call me Crimson." The stallion answered. "And no, I don't have anymore to share with. Sorry 'bout that."_

"That's okay, Crimsie. My name's Pinkamena Diane Pie, but everypony calls me Pinkie." Pinkie introduced herself and cleared her throat. "Do you know anything about the fourth wall?"

_"Sort of." _

"You're not a pony, are you?" Her usual bubbly tone changed and her poofy bubblegum colored hair deflated.

_"No... Well, it's no use keeping secrets this time around." Crimson sighed. "To start, my real name is Daisuke, the Four-Tailed Hermit. My current form is due to an exhausting transformation spell that I used two days ago. I'm only here because I used up all of my energy on that spell and now I won't be able to return home until then." _

"U no liek Ponyville?" Pinkie Pie's straight mane inflated back to its poofy self and made a cute face.

_"It's not like that, Pinkie. A lot has gone on during the really short time I've stayed here... and I'm still bummed about my kid sister being hurt." The stallion answered. "That, and I can't really do anything to help." _

"So, you have a sister, huh? Is she-"

Before the bubbly mare could interrupt, the unicorn stallion/half-human stood up with dilated eyes. His heart skipped a beat or two and everything went white. It was a rather vague vision of Akira barely standing from her improbably lethal injuries and then it switched to another image of his brother-in-law and his foster? sister dying. All the shine in his eyes left as he stood still, paralyzed by those images.

"Hey, are you alright?"

_"I... d-don't like where this is going. I thought I sealed him so long ago back in the past." Crimson shakily muttered. "H-hey, Pinkie." _

"What?" The pink Earth pony asked with a worried look. "You look like you've seen a ghost or something."

_"Oh... it's much worse. It's one of those things nopony else should want to know about." The unicorn stallion gulped with fear-filled eyes._

* * *

_**Fourth Wall Moment**_

[Nazou... are you alright?]

_"Half-beast, you're worried about me, too?" _

[Of course I'm worried, you dolt! I don't want ANY of my characters to be deeply traumatized. Look what I did to Akira. I was really lucky that she wasn't severely psychologically damaged.]

_"Don't you have a story to work on?_"

[Oh, right.]

* * *

_**Ponyville Park?**_

The mood was immediately broken by a woosh and the sound of hooves and flapping wings. When Crimson turned around, Can, erm Cadence and Enzo were right behind.

"Crimson, do you know somepony named Fluttershy?" The pink alicorn asked.

_"Why?" _

"This bird suddenly teleported into the hospital and I have a really good hunch it's trying to tell me something."

_"Pinkie has an idea of where Fluttershy lives. I just found out that I have an unfortunate ability to see trauma and insanity-inducing visions." _

Enzo quickly chirped as she flapped in place, her eyes burning with the "passion of a thousand suns" for someone to understand her.

_"So, you have met Cadence, Enzo. Any leads?" Crimson smirked. _

"Woah... you can understand what this bird's saying?" Pinkie exclaimed. "The possibilities-"

_"Not now, Pinkie." The stallion reprimanded the younger mare and turned to the timebird. "Wait, so you managed to save her somehow? Oh, I see. So you can take on her form, but it takes so much outta you." _

The timebird nodded and the stallion translated.

"Well, what did she say?" Cadence finally asked.

_"Enzo said that the ancient darkness will overpower the eternal light in five days. In certain places, Temporal Memory Gates will open to those with a heart of gold and a soul of silver. The part with the heart of gold means that someone... or somepony in this case would be pure of heart. I'm not too sure about what she meant by soul of silver." Crimson explained. "Unfortunately, the Temporal Memory Gates can't be opened unless... the gatekeepers permit. Well, something tells me that the gatekeepers are the elder who awakens under the light of the moon and the younger amidst the darkness. You know what that means?" _

* * *

Meanwhile...

A physically battered half-human woman limped while clutching her right shoulder with her left hand, barely alive from a previous battle; this has to be one of her most lethal injures, namely that most of the bones in her body are broken, save for her head and her limbs are bleeding profusely. In addition, she's still alive despite the multiple stab wounds on her heart from all of her prior battles. (But the blood's being absorbed by her red jacket, thankfully.) She struggled to stay conscious as her vision weakened, not giving up to the immense pain all over.

"I... I can't make it, everyone... I'm sorry." Finally giving over to her injuries, her vision faded from the pain and she fell on her knees. "I promised her... that I would visit one-"

She finally collapsed before finishing her sentence, physically broken and unconscious, the white space blooming into a dense forest illuminated by the moon.

=Chapter 3 End=

* * *

_HB DS:Finally, that took forever to write. Phew! _

Pinkie:I'm baaack!

_HB DS:Gah! Oh, right. Notes. _

Pinkie:Well, I'm glad you took my advice. So, what's next?

_HB DS:The next chapter won't involve cupcakes, that's for sure. I blame you for it, Pinkamena Diane Pie. _

Pinkie:Awww... Fine. No cupcakes. What WILL it involve?

_HB DS:Fluttershy and Rarity. Not in THAT sense, but it feels like they haven't been included that much anyway. _


	4. Akira and the 1st Temporal Memory Gate

_HB DS:Anyway, soo... Twilight, Shining Armor and Candace-_

Cadence:It's Cadence!

_HB DS:Fine! Cadence. It doesn't help that Candace and Cadence sound similar, okay! Anyway... the Sparkle family ends up sent to this white world, where they meet Akira and learn a bit about each other. Eventually, they find an unconscious Nazou/Crimson and end up being pwned by a formless swordsman. When Twilight and Crimson wake up in Sweet Apple Acres, the former uses fox magic just to get muffins and is almost discovered by Granny Smith. Even worse still, Enzo, Akira's timebird, in a strange ironic twist is sent here along with a message for her owner's brother. Meanwhile, Shining Armor wakes up in the Canterlot Royal Hospital in a bed... as his loving alicorn wife watches over him. The equine sun goddess, Princess Celestia comes in and reveals a brief flashback in the form of her first encounter with a certain half-human. This planet that Akira and Nazou hold dear to their mortal hearts, this planet that Celestia and her subjects call home, is it the same one? Or are they separate parallel versions of themselves? Will love and frienship prevail... Ehhh... Wow, so much for a summary. Wait, what you still doing here, Cadence? _

Cadence:You called me here, remember?

_HB DS:Nuh-uh! Good news, Shining Armor's gonna be outta the hospital soon. _

Cadence:Yay! Thank you so- Wait, what form am I in again?

_HB DS:You're in your alicorn form. _

Cadence:Aren't you a bit-

_HB DS:Don't remind me. *sends Cadence back to the other side of the fourth wall with no memory of this conversation whatsoever* Phew, finally, I can get started. *cracks fingers*_

* * *

**_Ponyville Park_**

"You knew about this and you didn't tell anypony else!?" Cadence exclaimed.

_"Hey, don't expect me to tell the important stuff first! 'Sides, you didn't ask." Crimson glared. "Oh yeah, I almost forgot." _

"Forgot about what?" Pinkie asked.

As soon as she asked, the unicorn stallion/half-human unrolled a scroll and started writing in Neighponese soon after dipping his brush in ink. Both mares stared with astounded looks as their stallion friend rapidly "slashed" at the scroll with a series of brush strokes in a skillful and graceful manner. As if he was back to normal again. When he finished writing, Crimson found himself stared at by the pink alicorn and Earth pony along with a butter yellow pegasus, accompanied by a white rabbit.

"Crimsie..." The pink Earth pony gasped.

_"What?" Crimson asked. _

"That. Was. Awesome!" Pinkie screamed. "Wait... what were you going to do again?"

_"Send it to uhh..."_

"Princess Celestia?" A new voice quietly interrupted.

_"Oh, it's you, Chibi- Gah! Er, I mean-" _

"It's Fluttershy, sir..." The butter yellow pegasus bashfully answered. "Sorry about earlier. I didn't mean to do anything horrible to you."

_"Don't worry about it. You didn't do anything, Chibiusa. Gah! I mean Fluttershy." The unicorn stallion sheepishly chuckled. "Gah! Seriously, the heck is wrong with me!?"_

"Hey, are you alright, Crimsie?" Pinkie asked.

_"It's nothing. Urgh, I might as well be aging. Anyway-" _

"Is that a scroll?" Fluttershy inquired.

_"Yes? Wait... how do you know about scrolls? It's not like-"_

"Oh... that language, is that Neighponese?"

_"Uhh, how do you know about it? It's a human language. And as far as I know, ponies and humans haven't been able to co-exist!"_

"Does it say anything about a solar eclipse, Mr. Crimson?" The pegasus mare asked.

_"Yes? Hrm... wanna come with me to the liebery?" _

"Ohhh, look at the time. I have to go back to work-" Pinkie interrupted.

_"Since when were YOU a workaholic!? Even though I'm a unicorn that ironically has no knowledge of unicorn magic, the fate of Equestria-" _

Before he could finish the sentence, the sky grew dark over Ponyville and Pinkie quickly wore a pair of eclipse glasses and looked up at the sun and exclaimed, "Is it me, or is the sun being gobbled up. Oooh, ooooh! Wait... is it a good thing?"

_"Not for me, it ain't!" Crimson growled. "Sure it's nice and pretty to look at, but it sometimes has an ominous vibe to it." _

* * *

**Meanwhile in Canterlot...**

"What's wrong, 'Tia?" Luna asked.

"Strange, I felt a bit of my power fade just now..." Celestia wondered. "I thought I heard somepony's voice in my head just now.

"What dost thou mean? Dost thou know thine translation spell?"

"We are alicorns. We're supposed to know at least ten languages, Lulu."

The black alicorn sighed in slight dismay at her older sister and contemplated her thoughts as she stared at the guards.

* * *

**Back in Ponyville...**

A large magical circle surrounded Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Princess Cadence and Crimson as Enzo glowed a golden yellow aura. The world around them was twisting and turning and fading for some reason.

_"Nanishiteruno, Enzo no baka!?" [What are you doing, you idiot!?] Crimson snapped. _

Enzo chirped rapidly and fearfully in response.

"What's she saying, Crimson!?" Cadence shouted.

_"Sate, kore wa kōshiki no monoda." [Okay, it's official.] The stallion translated. _

"What?"

_"THIS. Is. The. Worst. Possible. Thing!" His eyes shrank at every word as he realized that something bad's going to happen. _

As the magical circle intensified, it eventually enlarged and engulfed the mares (plus stallion) elsewhere...

* * *

"I thought I heard somepony say that." Rarity mused to herself with her refined drawl.

"What makes you say that?" A white unicorn filly asked.

"Oh, I KNOW when someone else would say it, Sweetie Belle." The white unicorn mare chuckled and gave a glare. "Why don't you play with Applebloom and Scootaloo, darling?"

"Okay! I was planning to do that anyway. See you later, Rarity!" Sweetie Belle gave a wide grin and left Botique Carousel...

* * *

_**Meanwhile, in some other place that I don't know of...**_

_"Argh... The heck happened to me?" Crimson wondered and stood up. When he looked around, instead of hooves, there were hands. In place of hooves were a pair of feet in wooden sandals. His sorta bare equine body had transformed back into his normal human self.*_  
_AN:Half-Demon Form=Nazou/Daisuke, Pony Form=Crimson Edge_

It had been four Mobian days at most, and the only thing he can do to celebrate is to prance like a little girl and frolick in the fields...when the place he woke up in was at a moonlit forest. For a moment, he crossed his arms and sat down, contemplating his thoughts. The half-demon thought about how Ponyville and Canterlot felt strangely familiar, despite not been there before. How he thought Fluttershy reminded him somewhat of a certain moon rabbit and finally, how he's all alone... on his own... in this forest.

Either way, he breathed in a whiff of the cold, forest air and watched as the leaves fell slowly from the trees to the ground. All he can do is nothing but stare at the moon, reminding him of its healing light.

* * *

"No, it's not a dream. It's real." Cadence thought to herself as she looked around. The former alicorn has been forced into her human form, but smiled, knowing of an experience that nopony would ever have. "At least I can still use magic, though."

Come to think of it, ever since she has met Crimson, most of her recent dreams involved her in her human form and not in her alicorn form. Even though she can't look at the sun, she can always look at the moon and its soft light. Tired of walking, she flapped her wings and took off into the air. For the most part, the moonlit forest was empty of life. No life, no stream, no wind... Nothing but the trees and the moon. And the sound of rustling.

The pink alicorn stopped flying and landed, onto a defensive stance. It rustled for a moment and stopped. About to take another step, she was ready to attack if whatever came out of the bush was hostile. What came out of the bushes was Enzo, the bird that accompanied them.

"I thought it was something else." Cadence sighed in relief. "It's just you, I guess.

She chirped happily in response and roosted on the alicorn's shoulder. Everything Enzo said became more clear in the sense that she speaks in telepathy.

_[So, you must be Mi Amore Cadenza... aka Cadence.] _The time bird telepathically replied. Her youthful voice echoed in the alicorn's ears. **  
**

"Yes, I am." The 'alicorn cleared her throat. "Are you Enzo?"

_[That's right.]_ Enzo nodded.

"How come I can't understand you in my normal form?"

_[Erm, birds normally can't understand the pony dialect.]_ Enzo answered.

The two conversed as they walked through the forest, and eventually the 'alicorn' asked the timebird the million-dollar question why Nazou/Crimson was sent to Equestria.

_[At first, I sent him over there to be a troll like what I did last time. Except that last time was justified because of my previous owner. Who controlled the Gate of Time. My old and current owners never met, but they both knew about the planet's existence being threatened.]_ The timebird replied telepathically. _[Anything else?]_

"Ummm... that woman in my husband's dream, who is she?" Cadence crossed her arms as she contemplated her thoughts.

_[I was afraid you would ask.] _Enzo hung her head and briefly preened her wings. _[No, she's not going after him. She's already married someone else and had three kids, one of them being adopted.]__  
_

"Tell me who she is." The 'alicorn' pressed on for an answer and glared at the timebird. "If you don't, I'll use an honesty spell on you so you'll have to tell everything anyway."

_[Oh, alright. Fine. I'll tell.] _The timebird quickly gave in and shook her head with worry and fear, knowing that Crimson's alicorn friend would be traumatized after. Instead, she got off Cadence's shoulder and stared at the 'alicorn'. Mi Amore Cadenza's eyes burned brightly with a pure heart and a burning resolve, which gave reason enough.

Unfortunately, before Enzo could start, the sound of someone screaming abruptly interrupted the silence and a nearby bush started rustling and rustled faster until a certain 'Earth pony' appeared being chased by changelings. At this point, since we're having a chase scene, I won't be able to pass the time by describing her human appearance. But I do know that's she's wearing something. And for some reason, her cutie mark's located near her shoulder.

"Ohmygosh, ohmygosh, ohmygosh!~" The 'Earth pony' was running at an improbable speed with arms raised and a panicked look and quickly screamed, "PRINCESS CADENCE, RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!"

"What?" Cadence turned around for a moment and started running like crazy as soon as she had a quick glimpse. "Enzo. I believe it's time to outrun... or outfly those changelings."

_[Right.] _The timebird nodded and rapidly flapped its wings, flying towards _Human!Pinkie's_ direction.

And so, the humanized alicorn and Earth pony along with timebird found themselves running away from a large swarm of changelings, which implies that a certain humanized 'fake alicorn' is around...

* * *

Crimson yawned and stretched his arms. He was tired and sleepy, and his ears were drooping. Not to mention his tails weren't moving because he's sitting down. Well, at least he's back in his normal form, which he's really happy about. The male half-human was about to doze off when he heard the bush rustle a bit, then footsteps and really loud screaming along with the sound of buzzing. And they're all coming in his direction.

"I DON'T TASTE GOOD AT ALL! SOMEONE DOOO SOMETHIIIING!" A bubbly voice screamed in fear.

"Pinkie Pie, less shouting, more running!" A second voice gasped.

_"What in the name of- Gah!"Nazou/Crimson wondered as his ears perked up and his tails started moving. He stood up, only to be nearly knocked down by the 'Earth pony'. "What the heck is going on here!?" _

Human! Pinkie stopped running and appeared behind teh half-demon, cowering in fear because she doesn't have her party cannon. Nazou understood what was going on and waited a moment until Human! Cadence was past him.

_"So, you're back." Nazou growled at the black and green swarm. "Never thought I would see you again." _

The changelings stopped. They recognized that voice... and understood him to be the same one who sided with the black alicorn Luna. The half-demon stared intently at the changelings, not moving an inch. The swarm also recognized that steely glare from a certain half-human they attacked much earlier... and made way for a tall, slender, teal-haired woman in a fanservice-inducing, formfitting charcoalish dress with dark green eyes and a pair of insectoid wings.

She walked in between her swarm and stopped in front of the humanized ponies and the changelings.

"Well, well well, if it isn't Mi Amore Cadenza." The smooth feminine voice smirked. "Ugh, and that childish nutcase of an Earth pony. Oh, and I recognize you, too."

_"You do?" Nazou redirected his glare to the woman. "What do you mean by that?" _

"Those eyes of yours remind me of that strange woman my changelings took care of. She was outnumbered, yes, but I was amazed that somepony like her would as manage to survive a battle with my master and walk away with lethal injuries while still fighting my changelings in that condition. What surprised me even more is that even while weakened, her eyes of gold burned brightly as she stared me down soon after succumbing."

_"Akira..." Nazou looked down for a moment and faced the 'fake alicorn' and growled. He clenched his fists and glared at her "You... Rgh, I never harm a lady, whether or not she would be good or evil." _

"You must be that chivalrous boy I met near the Canterlot airspace. Dear me, I haven't introduced-"

_"I am Queen Chrysalis of the Changelings, and I gain energy by forcibly extracting souls and feeding on positive emotions." Nazou interrupted while imitating Chrysalis' voice in a mocking manner (while reading her mind). "Oh, dear me, I lost my best source of food to a real alicorn, no thanks to that blasted Twilight Sparkle. Ahhh~"_

"Oooh~ that's a good one, Crimsie." Pinkie Pie giggled. "How'd you learn how to do that?"

_"I learned how to do that on my travels, party queen. Not bad, if I say so myself." The half-demon smiled at the 'Earth pony'._

"How dare you mock my voice AND my introduction! It's true that I feed on positive emotions, but I don't forcibly absorb souls." Chrysalis spat.

_"You lie. Your envious eyes told me the fate that has befallen my alicorn friend's mother. In addition to reading minds, I can learn many things simply by staring at someone's eyes. Now tell me where Fluttershy and my sister are or else your minions will regret crossing paths with me." _

"And another thing, that filly you call Fluttershy is close to death's door. I came close to breaking her wings before that nutcase interrupted me." The 'fake alicorn' glared at Pinkie. She sighed with complete dismay as she commanded her minions to leave and faced both Cadence and Nazou. "The next time we meet, I will have my revenge on you, Mi Amore Cadenza. And you too, Daisuke 'Nazou' Hayashi."

Within a leaf swirl, the forest was emptied of teh swarm of changelings. Nazou looked down at the ground, his blue eyes hidden.

"Are you alright?" Pinkie inquired.

_"Yeah... I'm fine. I can't believe that she hurt 'em. Especially my kid sister." Nazou quietly replied. _

"Crimson's not your real name, is it?"

_"Nope. My full name's Daisuke 'Nazou' Hayashi, and I have two nicknames as of my first day in Equestria." The half-demon turned to Human! Cadence and shook his head in slight disgust. "She's sick and twisted, that Chrysalis. Cadence, I also had no idea that you lost your mother that way." _

"Oh... did you lose anypony else, too?" Cadence hung her head.

_"Yeah. I lost my parents in the past while my brother-in-law and my foster sister died saving my kid sister. Not easy when you outlive your loved ones, is it?" _

"It won't be. I don't even know what to call you at this point, ahh..."

_"I would care less about whatever you want to call me. Just don't call me Daisuke." _

"Why not?"

_"Because... I don't do a good job of helping people. I'm never around when I'm needed the most." The half-demon gave a wry chuckle and looked up at the moon with sorrowful eyes. _

"Hey~ Cheer up, you two! Even though your mothers are dead, that doesn't mean that they'll be lost forever. Everypony you care about will always be in your heart." Pinkie huddled with Nazou and Cadence and smiled at the two. "I wouldn't know what dying's like, but I'll bet that you'll always feel everpony inside."

_"T-thanks for cheering me up, Pinkie. Although... I'm surprised that I can't see your cutie mark at all." Nazou chortled. _

"Come to think of it, I don't even know where mine is!" The 'alicorn' gasped for a moment and noticed something around her neck. The pendant was her cutie mark. "Hey, uhhh... Crimson. What's with your cutie mark, anyway?"

_"My cutie mark's basically a question mark surrounded by a pair of fireballs circling each other. Usually, cutie marks are obtained by way of talent or personality, but in my case, it's different."_

"Why the hay are we wasting time when we have other people to find!?" Pinkie interrupted. "C'mon!"

Nazou and Cadence agreed. They both had injured people to look for. Anyway, for the Earth pony's human form, her human was highly reminescent of a cute magical girl outfit except in varying shades of pink and white. However, she still gets to keep her super poofy bubblegum-colored hair and sky blue eyes.

* * *

_**Moonlit Forest Clearing**_

The trees obscured the moon and made it much harder for the three to traverse this forest. In addition, a thick fog suddenly rolled in, decreasing their visibility. Human! Pinkie skipped and hummed to the tune of "Never Gonna Give You Up" while Cadence flew and Nazou walked.

"What's your brother-in-law like?" The 'alicorn' asked. "I'm guessing that you know a hint or two about Twily."

_"Yeah, I know that I shouldn't mess with Twilight ever." Nazou gulped for a moment and looked down at the ground as he crossed his arms.. "Anyway, uhh... brother-in-law. Kiba's kind-hearted and strong and strangely quiet. Oh, and he's a doctor." _

"Does he have a diploma or a license?"

_"Yes." The half-demon flatly replied. "Oh, and we're basically commoners." _

"So what if you're a commoner, Crimson? I'm the kind of pony who doesn't make a big deal about my social rank. Ask Auntie Celestia. She's one of the co-rulers, and she knows everypony."

_"Somepony named Rarity told me how awesome Princess Celestia is. Looks like I'll hafta take her word for it." _

As soon as Pinkie stopped humming, the fog cleared, revealing an empty patch similiar to where Human! RD was found in chapter 1. But in that clearing were two human figures; one of them being a pink-haired girl with a butter yellow sweater, a pair of black shorts and butter yellow wings. Upon a closer look, the wings look broken. Chrysalis WAS right, she had her changeling mooks break her. Unfortunately, the figure next to her looked familiar. When Nazou realized who they were, the others followed suit and ran towards Fluttershy.

"Fluttershy, thank Celestia that you're alright!" Cadence sighed with worry. "Are you alright?"

"I-I think so. Those changelings hurt me enough that I can't fly." Fluttershy nodded. "But that thing in red isn't. I'm worried that it might be hostile."

_"I'll be the judge of that." Nazou frowned. He walked closer to the figure in red. When he opened the hood, it became clear who it was. _

The figure in red turned out to be Akira, Nazou/Crimson's younger sister. In her human form.* As soon as she stood up, Fluttershy walked closer to the unconscious woman and sat down near her while the male half-demon picked up his sister's back so that she's raised a bit. Akira stirred to everyone's voices, but everything was hazy and all she could figure were a bunch of silhouettes.

"N-Nazou? Is... is that you?" The younger Hayashi weakly asked.

_"Of course it's me. Enzo brought us here after sensing your aura." The older Hayashi answered. _

"D-did you... bring h-help?"

Nazou nodded and kept a firm arm on her jacket. It felt strangely warm for some reason. _"You're smart for wearing a red jacket so no one can see you bleed. How long have you been here?" he inquired. _

"Three... days. Same time you've been in Equestria." Akira replied. "Are they... hostile?"

"Now why would I want to hurt you?" Pinkie grinned. "I don't have any reason to do that."

"Looks like we're both fine... sort of." Fluttershy shyly answered. "Um, are you alright?"

"No. Anyway... who are you three and why are you here?" The younger Hayashi asked.

The Equestrians introduced themselves and Akira was surprised when Cadence mentioned her aunt.

"It's been a long time since I heard that name. But my head's been bashed so many times that I can't really remember people... or ponies very well in your case." Akira weakly chuckled and quickly cringed from the pain. Her eyes started to close, and at this point could do nothing while bleeding horribly.

_"Hey, stay with me here!" Nazou shook his head and gently shook his sister's body. _

"You... shouldn't move the... injured, onii-chan..." The female half-human muttered and succumbed to her injuries once again, forced into unconsciousness.

"Uhhhh... I don't like where this is going." Pinkie shuddered and felt the younger Hayashi's right hand. "Hey~ What's this red stuff?"

_"It's called blood. And if you see lots of it, it's NOT good. If you lose lots of it, let's just say it's not gonna end well." Nazou deadpanned and faced Enzo, who was perched on Cadence's shoulder. "Transfer us to Ponyville!" _

Enzo nodded as everyone surrounded her. A magical field appeared from the middle and engulfed the five, returning them back to Ponyville.

* * *

_**Ponyville Park**_

A yellow magical circle appeared and spat out Cadence, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie and the Hayashi siblings. It was soon after that they were greeted by the rest of the main cast (plus Spike) and this happened.

"What in tarnation is goin' on here!?" Applejack exclaimed.

"Fluttershy, Crimsie, Princess Cadence and I ended up in this weird forest and Queen Chrysalis came in-"

"You said what now, sugahcube?" The farmer furrowed an eyebrow and gave a confused look. "Take a deep breath and slow down.

Pinkie sighed and continued. "I said that Crystal came in with changelings and they were about to attack when I was all _'GASP' _and slightly scared and learned neat stuff about Crimsie. But Imma still gonna call him Crimsie anyway."

RD walked over to teh butter yellow pegasus and looked at her bandaged wings. "Whoa, what happened to you, Fluttershy?"

"The changelings found me... and broke my wings. But I'm okay, though."

"You won't be able to fly for awhile, buddy." RD shook her head.

After a quick scan at her sister-in-law, Twilight hugged/nuzzled Cadence and looked up at her with worry. It was with one look that the alicorn confirmed their encounter with Chrysalis.

"Is everypony alright?" The younger Sparkle asked.

Crimson stared at his now ponified sister. Her unconscious body that is a mare had a deep orange coat and a light brown and red mane. On her flank was a golden ring and inside the golden ring was a black fist engulfed in a flame which served as a cutie mark. Akira wore a red vest and a white shirt which covered the front part of her equine body.

"Crimson, what the- Who... is she?"

_"She's my kid sister, that's what! I need to bring her to the closest hospital NOW!" _

Twilight and Cadence understood and used their magic to levitate the unconscious deep orange Earth pony mare into the hospital (It doesn't help that there aren't any ambulance carts and the chances of a pony having broken legs is unlikely.) One of the nurses at the hospital immediately recognized the alicorn and looked at the sorry sight that was Akira and looked at the two.

"We'll take her from here." The nurse sighed. "Does the patient have any family members?"

_"Actually, that would have to be me." Crimson raised a hoof and answered. _

"Sir, how long has the patient been injured?"

_"Three days." _

"No pony can survive injuries like that!" The nurse exclaimed.

_"Everypony tells her that. Will she be alright?" _

"She will be. After all, your sister has a strong desire to live, doesn't she?" The nurse nodded as she levitated Akira into a gurney and left for the emergency hall with two others. Another nurse appeared and escorted Fluttershy to a different department as soon as the first one left.

**Later, in the waiting room...**

"This is the first time I've seen him like this." Twilight shuddered. "What happened?"

"Chrysalis happened. I know that she was blasted away from Canterlot with Shining Armor's help, but..." Cadence replied. "Akira's not so bad once you get to know her."

"Who?"

"Crimson's sister. She was barely conscious when we found her." The alicorn explained. "It's a miracle that she's still alive after sustaining injuries like that."

"How's Shining Armor?" The purple mare asked.

"He's alright, but he won't be able to work for a few. I've learned many things while I was stuck in that forest with him, Pinkie and Fluttershy."

"What's that?"

"He's not a pony, for starters. Crimson's actually a half-human and they seem to have a penchant for hiding dark secrets. One of them being his real name." Cadence shook her head and sighed. "And he knows about the strange bite in the sun in the sky. Crimson knows more than we do!"

_"I heard that. I WAS going to send the scroll I wrote to Princess Celestia, and you two are unfortunately involved in this now." Crimson/Nazou walked to the two and interrupted. "And it's called an eclipse. The last time it happened..." _

"You know about this, Crimson?" Twilight asked.

_"Yeah. It's weird that I saw Cadence, Pinkie and Fluttershy as humans while in that forest. I don't know how powerful 'Kira is, but she's definitely almost as strong back when she was cursed." _

"Am I... human?"

_"I would have to guess that sometime after that ill-fated event, she must have done something to everypony in here. It feels a lot like everypony's got human souls. And their ancestors at one point had past lives as humans... I think. I'm not too sure." _

"But humans are a myth!?"

_"I'm not disputing that they are. Plus, there's another race that existed before humans. We humans considered them to be myths too." _

"I don't get it. If you're a human, but a pony here, how come I can't see you as a human?"

_"That's because I'm half-human." The unicorn stallion bluntly replied. "Me and my kid sister, we're the ONLY half-humans descended from kitsune. Any significance?"_

"Kitsune... Wait, you're one of those mystical trickster foxes that Fluttershy told me about! I thought those were old mare's tales." _  
_

_"Humans consider pegasi and unicorns to be myths for that matter."_

"What!? That is an outrage! Why!?"

_"Same reason you've never seen humans; I don't count." Crimson shook his head. _

"Are you... Crimson Edge?" Nurse Redheart interrupted the two.

_"Yep." The stallion nodded. "Anything about her?"_

"With injuries like that, she has a 0.01% chance of survival." Nurse Redheart explained while sighing out of worry and relief. "But then again, she's not a normal pony. When I had a look, she had multiple stab wounds to the heart, one laceration on the back and her body was hemorhagging. When was the last time she has been to a hospital?"

_"Thirteen years." _

His response to Nurse Redheart's question shocked everypony. Especially Rainbow Dash and Rarity who were apparently surprised.

"Why didn't you bring her to a hospital thirteen years ago!?" Nurse Redheart gaped.

_"It doesn't help that she doesn't live near a hospital. Or near the city for that matter." _

"Oh... I see. Anyway, after looking over the data, I am afraid that she would have to stay in this hospital for the next five days."

_"I almost forgot to tell you one crucial detail." _

"And what would that be?" Nurse Redheart asked.

_"She's afraid of hospitals." _

"How did she become afraid of hospitals?" Twilight inquired.

_"No one in my family knows how that happened." Crimson shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. "It's one of those things that we don't want to know about. " _

"Suuure..." The younger Sparkle replied as she rolled her eyes.

"Oh, and visiting hours are almost over." Nurse Redheart interrupted.

The unicorns (save for Rarity) and Rainbow Dash sighed and left the hospital; Crimson looked back for a moment and when he did, the sun turned into a shade of red that is highly reminescent of blood.

_**Ponyville**_

_"There's something you don't see everyday." Crimson muttered to himself as he briefly looked at the sun then at the massive scroll he had on his back. _

"What's that on your back?" Rarity asked.

_"This is a massive scroll that explains the current problem. I can also sense a rather ominous prescence somewhere in Canterlot, though." The unicorn stallion replied. "Something tells me you must be the one called Rarity."_

"Yes. Yes, I am." The white unicorn mare answered. "Do you have a sister?"

_"The deep orange mare in the hospital? Yeah, that's my kid sister. Except... she's not a kid anymore." Crimson smirked to himself. "What about you?" _

"My sister, Sweetie Belle is around with the Cutie Mark Crusaders."

_"What's that 'posed to be?" _

"The Cutie Mark Crusaders are a club of sorts dedicated to obtaining their cutie marks. None of us are outright born with them, so we have to discover our special something. Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo are probably doing some dangerous stunt as we speak." Rarity explained as she sighed with slight dismay.

Nazou/Crimson nodded at her answer, and stared at Twilight and Cadence as they were talking. The sappy moment made him smile and think about his duty to this planet. Especially since that he had a responsibility as a co-Guardian of the Earth. He contemplated his thoughts and closed his eyes for a moment. There was a planet that needed saving, and in this case, no one knows what it is. If he told Celestia later, there wouldn't be a next time. But if he told her now, he could risk being arrested for jeoparding Equestria. Then again, he doesn't know much about this place.

"It's been nice spending time with you, Twilight. Although, today did not work out so well." The alicorn gave a slight chuckle.

"At least you're alright, Cadence. You're welcome here anytime." Twilight smiled. "Tell Shining Armor I said hi."

Cadence walked away from her sister-in-law and looked up at the dark sky. There was a sense of foreboding nearby, and it filled her heart with apprehension. The unicorn stallion summoned Enzo from his mane and looked up.

_"Hey, can you bring this scroll with you, Enzo?" Crimson asked. _

_[Sure. Who's this for?] The timebird mentally inquired. _

_"Somepony called Celestia. And seeing as Cadence's going back to Canterlot, you should come with her for a bit. I'm pretty sure that Akira won't mind." The stallion answered as he tied the scroll to the bird's back. "I'm guessing that she learned how to talk with you?" _

_[Of course. Telepathy and translation spells don't mix at all, Nazou-kun.] Enzo replied. _

"Do you mind if I can borrow Enzo for a while?" Cadence interrupted.

_"Sure. I was actually hoping to send something to Princess Celestia anyway. That, and Enzo seems to like you for some reason." Crimson smiled. _

Enzo flapped her wings and jumped off Crimson's head. She then flew towards Cadence's direction and roosted on her head.

"Is Enzo your pet?" The alicorn asked.

_"Nope. She's Akira's pet. Whatever place you're thinking of, she'll teleport you there if you say the words, 'Transfer me!'." _

"Thanks so much, Crimson!" Cadence gave a wide grin and disappeared with Enzo in a blue light.

"So~ How is she?" Pinkie asked.

_"She'll be stuck in there for awhile, and I'm still here." Crimson hung his head and sighed. "Man, this is unfair. It's unfair that I'm a unicorn and I still can't use unicorn magic." _

"Look on the bright side, Crimsie. At least you met a bunch of great ponies." The bubbly mare answered.

_"Well, there's that. How's your experience as a human?" _

"It was fun! And weird at the same time. My Pinkie sense's kinda wonky, though."

_"I can't believe I got to see you in a magical girl outfit, Pinkie. Now I know that I shouldn't mess with you. Ever." The stallion chuckled nervously._

"What was that?" Pinkie turned around with a psychotic look.

_"Nothing." He quickly cringed and looked at Rainbow Dash. _

"What are you lookin' at?" The cyan pegasus gave a questioning look.

_"It's nothing." Crimson shook his head. "You're the first one that I've seen with a human form. Twilight and Shining Armor are tied for second, while Cadence, Pinkie and Fluttershy are tied for third. The only ones that I haven't seen in human form are Applejack and Rarity." _

"Is this a poll or something?" RD asked.

_"Nope." _

"Hey, Daisuke."

_"What?" _

"How's Scarlet?" The cyan pegasus inquired hesitantly.

_"I wouldn't know. I've been here for the last three days, remember?" _

"Oh."

_"I'll bet that she's fine. Scarlet's cutie mark would probably be a cross and a spanner. 'Sides, my family's basically adopted." _

Pinkie and RD's reactions to that raised their eyebrows. Twilight trotted closer to the stallion and looked him in the eye.

"Wait a minute, what do you mean by adopted?" The purple mare asked.

_"I'm the only biological family that 'Kira has, and from what she told me, she was taken in by a kind old lady and her granddaugher for a while." Crimson explained. "On her tenth birthday... it didn't end well, is all I could say." _

"What happened on that day?"

_"Akira calls it Crimson End." _

"Why is it called Crimson End?"

_"I believe it is called that because the immense murders that were committed under a full moon. She told me that the ordeal cost her memories and part of herself in addition to her sanity." _

Twilight's face paled at the stallion's answer; she read about something like that back in Canterlot at one point. Cadence told about her brief conversation with the female half-human. And from what her sister-in-law remembered, Shining Armor gave a description of her physical appearance.

"Hey... I-is she the..." The purple unicorn gulped. "The Three-Tailed Demon?"

_"Yeah. I think 'Kira and Luna would have a field day together, seeing as they both were under control of an evil force at one point."_

"Right." Twilight sweatdropped. "Come to think of it... they would."

_"Anyway... your eyes are telling me that you consider Spike to be your surrogate son and have an exceedingly strong sisterly bond with Cadence." Crimson deadpanned._

"Hey, that's not fair! You read my mind."

_"Sorry about that." The stallion nervously chuckled and rubbed the back of his head with his fore hoof. "This is dialogue heavy."_

"What was that?"

_"Nothing!" _

Everything blacked out and another white explosion engulfed Ponyville, engulfing everyone in a bright pillar of light that can be seen all the way from Canterlot.

* * *

_**Canterlot **_

Cadence and Enzo were back in Canterlot, save that they are right outside the Royal Hospital. The timebird dismounted teh alicorn's head and saluted at her, flying towards the direction of the Royal Castle.

The small, round, yellow-feathered timebird raced the streets of the capital city as she maneuvered through the buildings and the unicorns. Her small heart skipped a beat or two as the small scroll on its back bounced. At the same time, a cobalt alicorn can be seen walking on her own and/or socializing? with the ponies when a small, round, yellow bird crashed into her.

"HALT! STATE YOUR BUSINESS!" Luna used the RCV (Royal Canterlot Voice) and an intimidating look on the timebird.

_[I need to deliver this scroll to somepony named Princess Celestia.] The timebird replied telepathically. _

"You have a message for my sister? Who is it from?" The cobalt alicorn asked.

_[Sir Nazou, erm, Crimson sent it.] The timebird answered._

Understanding the dire situation, both entered the castle doors and teleported into Celestia's room. The white alicorn was doing "important royal business" (paperwork) when it was interrupted by the two opening the doors in a violent manner.

"What's the meaning of this, Luna!? The sun is still up for crying out loud!" Celestia cried.

"I believe this timebird, is what she is called has an important message for you, 'Tia." Luna replied.

Celestia telekinetically summoned the scroll from Enzo, who by now decided to roost on the cobalt alicorn's head. The same scroll that was on her back enlarged to its normal size. When opened, the white alicorn had a hard time reading it for a moment then realized that it was meant to be read from right to left and held horizontally. What she saw confirmed everything so far and even did as much as to describe the last time it happened. She was shocked to see that the mere name of her foalsitter IS the same 'Three-Tailed Demon' that ravaged the humans in the past... and reassured her that Akira actually didn't do it of her own will.

"Are you alright, 'Tia?" Luna asked.

"It... It can't be. She's barely alive." Celestia nervously chuckled. "Fate has definitely brought them back to this planet we all hold dear..."

"Who are you talking about, fair sister? And who is this 'Three-Tailed Demon' you speak of?" The lunar alicorn inquired.

"The Legendary Three-Tailed Demon... Luna, according to human lore, she is known to be a fearsome half-human said to have the mind of a monster and the soul of a little girl. When her eyes turn into a blood-red color, many run in fear, for her wrath knows no bounds. Encounter her with golden-yellow eyes, and one shall see the pain and sorrow within." The solar alicorn looked up and sighed. "She... she's my former foalsitter. And Crimson confirms her as his younger sister."

"Y-you mean that-"

"Yes, Luna. Two legends return from the stars to confront the ancient evil." Celestia answered. "I remember now... After the ancient evil was released into our world, Mother and I banished Akira into the stars. For that, my memories of her were sealed and her memory of me were locked away. To this day, she is still a powerful half-human in her own right. All this before you were born."

"Is she that powerful?" Luna asked.

"I am not sure. She might not be. Akira once told me that she does not want to be considered the same as a god or a monster." The white alicorn calmly replied.

"The humble type, I presume?"

"I believe so."

=Chapter 4 End=

* * *

I'm trying NOT to make this OC-centered. And I'm not doing a good job at it. Even though Akira almost became a Mary Sue character, I made sure that she has a lot of flaws and that she can't be more powerful than canon characters under normal circumstances. Older? Yes. Younger? Yes. Stronger? No. Faster? No. I made an alicorn OC named Solar Flare and she's Celestia and Luna's mother. Plus, I finally managed to ponify Akira at the possible cost of making her comatose and/or stuck in a hospital. And I had the experience of turning Cadence, Pinkie, Flutttershy and Chrysalis into humans. Oh, and this is part of my series, not canon. So, uh... you may not like what I'm doing. At least I'm NOT shipping anyone. Wait... I think I had an accidental FluttershyXOC moment. When the Mane 6, Shining Armor, Cadence and Chrysalis are humanized, their cutie marks will be around somewhere. Here's the list:

Rainbow Dash:Shown on the back of hoodie.

Twilight:Badge Form on the right side of chest.

Shining Armor:Same as Twilight.

Cadence:Shown as a necklace.

Pinkie Pie:Shown on left shoulder.

Fluttershy:Shown on right shoulder.


	5. Of Human Forms and Faded Memories

I'm surprised that I actually woke up at four in the morning today. Hmm... maybe I should start archiving my chapters too. Unfortunately, this is gonna put a damper on my sleep habits later on.

* * *

The white light engulfed Ponyville again, but this time it took Rainbow Dash, Pinkie, Rarity and Applejack along with Twilight and Crimson, forcing them into their human forms. However... let's have some fun with them, shall we?

Applejack basically got turned into a cowgirl, namely that she still has freckles on her face, she still has green eyes, she's still blonde, and her orange coat turned into a shirt. And she has pants... There's no question about that. Oh, no, don't get any ideas! Don't even... do it! Oh, and her cutie mark became a buckle for her belt. Rarity on the other hand... let's go have a balance between practical and flamboyant. But then again, this is Rarity we're talking about. Oh, the irony of it all. She's a fashionista, and I don't like fashion. On the other hand, my friend wants to be a fashionista...

"I'm waaaiiiiting..." Pinkie crossed her arms and stood on her hind legs while tapping them impatiently and stared straight at the fourth wall.

Okay fine! Let's just give Rarity a simple dress shirt and white pants, along with a pair of work glasses that would match her purple hair and blue eyes. Assuming that she's the oldest of the Mane Six. Yeesh, just had to be ambiguous with the age. At least we all know one thing.

"What?" Pinkie asked.

Rarity sounds the most mature, and Fluttershy's older than you. I think you might be the youngest. So there's a discrepancy between you and Rarity. But then again... Okay, fourth wall break time over.

"What the heck!?" Human!Twilight exclaimed as she looked down. "Why the hay am I in a purple sweatervest and a preppy uniform? And why are my legs showing!?"

_"You choose to be aware of this... now?" Nazou deadpanned and shook his head. "Well, whoop dee do." _

Twilight Sparkle was surprised that she had a human form and looked up at Crimson. His normal form consisted of him wearing a green kosode and a red hakama along with white tabi on wooden geta. His dreads were turned into semi-spiky short mahogany hair, and his deep blue eyes stared down at his mahogany tails.

"It's been a while since I've seen you like that, Crimson... Or should I say, Nazou?" Human!Rainbow Dash smirked.

_"It has been. You're taking this surprisingly well." Nazou closed his eyes and smiled at the comment. "You're probably confused at this point, indecisive on a name to pick. Something tells me that Derpy has that problem as well." _

"Yeah, there's that." The girl in cyan calmly replied. "Hey, wonder how AJ and Rarity are taking it?"

_"Let's find out." The half-demon chuckled and walked over to the apple farmer and fashionista/seamstress and gave a straight face as he watched them argue._

"You? In that? Oh, please! It does not even LOOK decent." Human!Rarity shouted.

"Well, they're mah clothes and don't even-" Human!Applejack countered.

_"Think about it!" Nazou interrupted with a firm voice and cleared his throat while crossing his arms. _

"Say what now?" The apple farmer asked.

_"The last thing I want are you getting used to your human forms. I don't even wanna think about it since I'm a guy, erm colt, and you guys are girls, er, fillies. At any rate, Ponyville's most likely gonna be 'taining seizures everytime this happens." _

"Cea...zers?" Human! Applejack inquired with a confused look.

"You're basically on the ground moving in a manner that is disturbing and scary while foaming at the mouth." Human! Twilight explained.

"Oh. Has anypony seen Pinkie Pie?"

"So wait a minute, you're actually not a pony? Why didn't you tell us?" Human! Rarity looked up at the male half-demon.

_"To answer your question, Applejack, I haven't seen her. Rarity, to answer yours, I didn't think that ponies would believe in hybrids. Think Twilight became surprised when she found out about my sister. Do you consider my sister to be scary?" Nazou asked. _

"No. If I had seen her, she would not be." The fashionista/seamstress answered.

"Akira's pretty cool. I can tell that she's trying her best not to get angry." RD gave an aloof smile and chuckled. "I thought for a second that she can be nice to those kids."

_"What do you think, Twilight?" The half-demon asked the librarian._

"Think about what?" The younger Sparkle asked.

_"Think about my sister, that's what! You definitely have a military man for a brother and a princess for a sister-in-law." Nazou retorted. _

"I... I don't know yet. But your sister looks like she's been through a lot. And that she seems to be the sort of person to have a lot of dark secrets!"

_"She DOES have a lot of secrets. No matter how hard the problem would be, no matter how many time she's always kicked around, Akira always stands up on her own and stares at her enemies with her burning eyes of gold. Plus, my kid sister's actually more powerful than me, curse or no curse. But I'm not that jealous anyway." _

"Come to think of it... the both of us can relate... sort of."

_"Nah, you're more likely to relate to my niece. You and her are BOTH eggheads. Even though we used to know a literal egghead..." The half-demon shook his head. _

Everyone was walking on the white space again, and some time have passed for them. They all walked on until a familiar voice was heard shouting, "MOON! GORGEOUS! MEDITATION!" A pink beam was shot from point blank at the half-demon's chest and doubled over in pain.

"Are you alright, sugahcube?" The apple farmer asked as she pulled the half-demon up.

_"Yeah. That's weird, I thought I heard someone's voice." Nazou muttered as he took Applejack's hand and brushed the dust off himself. "What in the name of the moon is-"_

The shot came from Pinkie in her magical girl outfit. Unfortunately, she has a magic staff to go along with it and worse, she got that from my head! Human! Pinkie Pie teleported in front of Nazou, surprising him and everyone else.

"Pinkie..." Twilight gasped.

"I knew you were crazy and all..." Rainbow Dash gaped.

"I am shocked, really." Rarity deadpanned.

"Is it me, or are you...?" Applejack asked.

_"Pinkie Pie, there's no possible way you could have a hammerspace." Nazou shook his head and frowned. _

"Guys... why are you looking at me like that?" Pinkie Pie sweatdropped and gave a nervous chuckle.

_"Pinkie... nopony could have a hammerspace." The half-demon flatly replied. "Now put the staff back so I won't get hurt." _

"Fine..." The baker/party girl sighed dejectedly and returned the staff to her hammerspace.

Finally caught up with the pink nutcase, everyone continued walking until fog obscured their vision, blocking their view and a feeling of dread permeated there.

"You must be the one called Twilight Sparkle..." A deep voice rang. "How admirable..."

"So what if I am?" Twilight retorted.

"You who possess untapped power within, waiting to be unleashed."

_"Leave Twilight out of it!" Nazou roared. _

"Half-human scum." The voice growled.

_"Rgh. Why are you here?" _

"All part of my plan." The voice chuckled. "In the past, the demons destroyed each other by way of fear and hatred. Long after their demise were the ignorant humans that you so consider to be a myth. I hastened their deaths by using the one they fear the most: the 'Three-Tailed Demon'. Born of a human mother and a kitsune father, she posessed a latent power along with a curse that strengthens by fear and hatred. With that, I used her to destroy those pathetic meatbags. Their screams of pain and agony was music to my ears as I used that half-human to slaughter most of them..."

"What!? That's cruel!" Rainbow Dash roared. "But why take it out on ponies THIS time!?"

"Their ignorance will be the end of all ponykind. And this rock you hold dear... is the same planet that was once inhabited by humans and demons." The voice laughed.

"You heartless brute! I refuse to believe everything you say." Rarity glared.

"I feel like going crazy right now." Pinkie chuckled.

"Ahm not gonna let you hurt my friends. Or our home!" Applejack growled.

_"You feed on the hatred of others and the darkness in all our hearts. Even in your sealed form, you still plague this Earth!" Nazou frowned and lowered himself, ready to unsheath his weapon as he shouted angrily and his eyes narrowed. "As long as life, love and friendship exist, you won't get your way!"_

"Argh! You win this time, incomplete monster. But the next time we meet, will be the last..." The voice echoed as the white space desintegrated...

* * *

_**Ponyville**_

"What happened?" Rarity asked as she rubbed her head. "Did we just-"

"-transform into humans? What does it all mean?" Pinkie Pie wondered. "Anypony else alright?"

"Ahm alright, sugahcube." Applejack nodded. "Twi? Crimson?"

"That was weird." Twilight shook her head and looked at the apple farmer. "Did you see that, Applejack?"

"Y-yeah... sumthin's not right. There was a voice in our heads earlier. An' it seemed to know about y'know, 'bout Crimson's sister." Applejack wondered.

_"So, looks like this is the distant future after all..." Crimson thought. "But it doesn't make sense. Earth was destroyed after Crimson End, and Nanaki was still sealed within my kid sister. Seems like she's definitely the Guardian, alright." _

"What are ya thinkin' bout, sugahcube?"

_"Huh? Oh, I don't have much to say this time." The stallion shook his head. "I'm guessing everypony's okay?" _

The mares nodded and all they could do is go home and try to get some sleep; Crimson left the hospital area and walked away towards the direction of the Everfree Forest, presumably to think things through.

_**Next day, at the Ponyville Hospital...**_

Fluttershy was recently released from her stay, escorted by a nurse when she noticed a deep orange-coated, brown and red maned pony next door wrapped in bandages save for her face. The sight of the new pony prompted the nurse to look at her for a moment.

"Who brought her here, nurse?"

"Twilight Sparkle, Princess Cadence and somepony named Crimson Edge." The nurse smiled as she stared sadly at Akira. "I was actually surprised at having Princess Cadence visit, seeing as she is usually in Canterlot for royal business and that Crimson had a younger sister.

"What's the name of the new pony?"

"That's Kira." The nurse answered. "She's here because of all the injuries that she's sustained."

"Oh, my." The butter yellow pegasus shook her head. "Is she alright?"

"For the most part, no. Kira managed to survive even though most of her bones have been broken in... well, at least twenty-seven places. Hey, why don't you visit her or something? If you need me, there are visitors to admit."

* * *

_**Ponyville Hospital Room #11**_

The butter yellow pegasus mare nodded and entered Akira's room. It was big enough for a small party, it would seem. One hoofstep in and the brunette mare woke up, sensing her prescence. Even though her wings have just healed, she still won't be able to fly until the next day. When she was within arm's distance of her bed, the brunette mare looked at her and tried to smile.

"I heard about your release. Congratulations." Akira smiled weakly.

"Thank you. Won't you be lonely?" Fluttershy asked.

"Yeah. But I normally don't have any company." The younger Hayashi replied. "Where in Equestria am I?"

"Uhhh... you're in a hospital?" The butter yellow pegasus mare gave an awkward smile.

"Excuse me, but you have visitors." The nurse entered the room and interrupted. "Whatever it is you did, you must have done something to have Captain Armor and Princess Cadence visit you personally."

In a few moments, the nurse left and the Sparkle family entered. Fluttershy turned to her friend and gave a shocked look; Akira wasn't impressed and gave a flat face.

"You must be Akira, am I right?" Shining Armor darkly inquired.

"So what if I am?" Akira growled. "What are you going to do, arrest me? I haven't done anything-"

"Except deserve a visit." The older Sparkle answered and raised a hoof. "The name's Shining Armor."

"My name's Twilight Sparkle." The purple unicorn mare smiled and was about to shake hooves with the deep orange Earth pony when she realized that she's in a body cast. "Oh, right... I forgot about your injuries."

"Wow... this is a first." Fluttershy smiled at the librarian.

"Fluttershy, what happened to you?" The younger Sparkle asked. "You're the least likely pony to get hurt."

"I had my wings broken yesterday." The butter yellow pegasus mare hung her head for a moment, and quickly gave a sunny smile. "But I'm alright now, thanks for your concern, though."

"Let me guess. You must be Cadence." The orange mare deadpanned. "Pfft, newlyweds."

"I'm so glad you're alright, Akira. Have you seen your brother?" The pink alicorn asked.

"Wait... why do I have hooves? And what the heck are you!? Are you somekinda... unicorn-pegasus hybrid?" Akira frowned.

"To answer your first question, you're an Earth pony." Cadence explained. "And I'm an alicorn... a mortal alicorn. But still! I never figured you would end up as a cute Earth pony mare."

"First of all, there's no single way that I would as much as let you lay a hoof on MY tofu. Second of all, I'm... NOT A PONY!" The orange mare growled.

"Suuure, whatever you say. Anyway, do you know anything about that eclipse?" Twilight asked.

"Even in this time, it still has significance... even after the last time I was here..." Akira muttered.

"What was that?"

"Sorry, I don't remember much, save that somepony named Solar Flare sealed 'em." The orange mare frowned and chuckled. "I was inflicted with a curse that robbed me of my memories and my sanity each time I went berserk."

"You're definitely the Three-Tailed Demon, the one and the same." Cadence shook her head and smiled. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't tell you straight because I was afraid that you might be afraid of me." Akira sighed. "Especially because of what I can do."

"Despite your rough demeanor, you're actually a kind pony." Shining Armor interrupted as he leered. "And I also know that you have a weak spot for foals."

"Pfft. As-" Before she could say anything, her eyes widened and she watched helplessly as the older Sparkle presented a cute picture of the orange mare in her half-human form holding a baby girl while watching a pair of human boys play with a fox girl. "How did you-"

"Oh, Crimson put me up to this just in case."

"Fine: I DO like kids! I admit it! Ugh, what else do you want?" The orange mare narrowed her eyes in anger.

"I was actually hoping if you know anything about that formless shadow?" Shining Armor inquired. "I had a dream in which Equestria was shrouded in darkness and that there were five locked doors."

"Shrouded in darkness, five locked doors..." Akira's eyes widened at the white unicorn's description and glared at Cadence. "So, it was YOU who found 'Gekkou no Mori': The first Temporal Memory Gate. It only opens to those with a pure heart and a kind soul. How the heck-"

"Ha, so YOU DO KNOW!" Shining Armor smirked.

"Shining Armor, she won't be able to help us if you're gonna act foalish!" Twilight admonished.

"You're the one who wanted to know about-"

"Ahem!" The orange mare cleared her throat and glared at the two. "First of all, shut up! Second of all, let me finish."

Both of the Sparkle siblings looked down out of dismay; Cadence giggled to herself.

"Anyway... in accordance with the Elements of Harmony, I created the Temporal Memory Gates for the purpose of sealing the one who caused all this." Akira explained gravely. "Even though I was the one who did that unforgivable deed thirteen years ago, I never had any ill-will towards this planet. Or humans for that matter. No matter how hard it was for me to even as much as attempt to deny my dual heritage."

"Dual heritage?" Both unicorns wondered.

"I'm guessing my older brother didn't tell you yet." The orange mare continued. "What I mean by dual heritage is that in addition to being half-human, I'm also descended from kitsune. However... no thanks to THIS hospital, I can't transform and show you."

"Oh. That doesn't explain why I've been dreaming that I was a human." Cadence answered.

"In the case of everypony else that's not a unicorn, their ancestors were reincarnated from humans. In your case, I'm not too sure. Unless... nah, it can't be possible." Akira growled softly.

"You mean that we're technically humans!?" Twilight exclaimed.

"No. You're still ponies. Although... I sensed something from Fluttershy."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I find it strange that she can understand Neighponese normally and the fact that she knows about kitsune. There IS NO possible way that she could have known." The orange mare answered passionately and tried to move her arm, but screamed in pain after an inch. "Owww..."

"Um... if you need me, I will be back home at the edge of the Everfree Forest." Fluttershy interrupted. "It's been nice seeing you Twilight. And you too, Princess Cadence."

"See you later." The purple unicorn waved goodbye to her pegasus friend and turned to the orange mare. "Oh, almost forgot. Rainbow Dash and the others are coming to visit you, too. I think it's time for me to go."

"We'll see you around, Akira." Shining Armor nodded.

"Yūgure-san, Hikaru-dono... Kaisha no tame ni dōmo arigatō." Akira answered sincerely and smiled.

The Sparkle siblings left, leaving Earth pony and alicorn alone in the room for a moment. Silence pervaded the room and Cadence learned a bit more about her newfound friend.

"You're thanking them, aren't you, Akira?" Cadence translated.

"I am. In fact, you should leave with Yugure and Hikaru." Akira smirked. "If you're going to ask, it means their names in Japanese... or should I say Neighponese here."

"You know so much about what's going to happen. Is it possible that..."

"No, I can't predict the future. But I can tell you this: Part of the secret is the strong desire to protect everything that you love. My brother passed down the teachings of a certain moon rabbit down to me." The orange mare answered. "Now I am passing this down to you in the hope that in the future, nopony will have to experience what I have been through."

"Alright. Take care of yourself, okay?" The alicorn smiled back and nodded at her and left, closing the door with her magic.

Soon after, the rest of the Mane 6 come in... and unfortunately, it's not that peaceful. Before she could drift off to sleep, the door exploded open and various loud sounds could be heard and finally someone shouting, "TIME TO PARTY! WHOOOOOOO!"

"Pinkie... I know that it's her first time and all, but take it easy." The first voice admonished.

"Calm down, sugahcube. Y'all are too loud, an' the nurse'll kick us out." The second voice had a noticeable Southern accent.

"Awww... it WAS gonna be a welcome party for Kira and Crimsie." Pinkie groaned. "Wonder where he went, though."

"Pray tell, what does our new friend look like?" A new voice, but with a refined Trans-Atlantic accent asked.

"She's an Earth pony with a coat of orange that's a darker shade than Applejack's." Pinkie answered. "I know... because she was lying on the ground last time I saw her. And she's human."

"What? Human? Pinkie, are you sure?" The refined voice inquired with doubt in her voice.

"Of course I'm sure. Ask Dashie, she's seen her."

"It's true. She has those armor-penetrating eyes of gold and those weird marks on the right side of her cheek. And she also has a brown and red mane." Rainbow Dash replied.

RD and Pinkie Pie came in with a white unicorn and another Earth pony. It was hard to believe that the same girl clad in cyan clothes came from a pegasus and the other three were ponies.

"Whoa, when Pinkie said that you were an Earth pony, she literally meant it." Rainbow Dash sweatdropped. "I heard the entire story from Pinkie and Fluttershy. Are you alright?"

"No. It's been awhile, Rainbow Dash. How are you?" Akira inquired.

"Doing fine, I guess. Anyway, you may recognize Pinkie. Me and Crimson think you two can get along because of you being angry-crazy and Pinkie here being happy-crazy."

"HEY!" Both pink and dark orange Earth pony mares proteseted. "We're NOT psycho!"

"Rainbow Dash... anyone else you'd want me to meet?" The dark orange mare asked with an irritated tone.

"Ahem! Mah name's Applejack. Y'all must be Kira. Nice tah meet ya." The orange Stetson-toting mare smiled.

"Let me guess... you sell apples?"

"Yup. How's about you come in an' buy some when you git outta here?"

"Sure? Un, what's yours?" Akira frowned and stared at the white unicorn.

"I am a lady. As such, you may call me Rarity." The white unicorn flipped her mane and smiled.

The moment Rarity finished her introduction, various images of a white fiery-maned alicorn suddenly appeared from the back of her head and the dark orange mare spaced out.

* * *

_**[Flashback, Akira's Memories, 1st Encounter]**_

_Back when my late grandmother and sister were alive, back when I was only a little kid, before my birthday, I was going through my usual shtick in life: being the source of trouble for everyone around me. And all because I was half-human._

_But today was one of those weird days that I would probably never remember for a while, at least. As I ran, I felt a strange presence. When I looked beside me for a moment, there was a large, white horse running by my side. Was it a dream? Was it real? I faltered for a moment, and the horse overtook me and galloped away, as if smiling at me. But when I stopped and fell on my knees, there were trees all around me. Instead of that, I kept on running until I crashed into an invisible magical barrier and fell on my rump._

_"Owww... Grandma's gonna have a heart attack if I don't come home soon." I muttered._

_But there was a calm voice in my head that basically called me to reach out my hand. My ears twitched once or twice, suspiscious of the voice. Wait... what if it's one of those smooth-talkin' voices that would lead you into some sketchy place an' try tah eat 'cha. I found myself holding my bushy brown and red tail as I hesitated for a moment. The moment I took a step into the barrier, it changed from a forest into something called a plain. But all it had were horses._

_I was kinda curious on the outside, but freakin out inside because it's weird an' looks like something from one a those girly fantasies. At the sight of the rainbow and all those girly stuff, everything around me blacked out and I felt like puking rainbows for crying out loud._

_"Poor foal... you followed me here by mistake." The feminine voice had a kind and motherly tone as she apologized. "It seems like I have no choice but to bring you with me."_

_I didn't know what had happened, but it felt warm and my tail felt kinda hot... Except that it wasn't on fire. I had to assume that she sounded much older as whoever it was stroke my head... with a hoof? What if she's gonna eat me!? OH man, oh man! Her voice sounds so human... and I usually don't take kindly to humans... unless it was my grandmother or my sister. But when I came to, it didn't come from a human: it came from a fiery-maned white pegasus/unicorn hybrid._

_"Forgive me. I never meant to startle you." The horse spoke in a calm tone._

_"Wuh? W-where the heck am I!?" I was freaking out at this point, almost about to cry for my grandmother. "Are... you going to eat me?"_

_"You must have lost your way and entered the magical barrier. I suppose it can't be helped, since you are a mere foal." The horse calmly explained. "And, no. I have no intention of doing that. Tell me your name, and I will tell you mine."_

_"Um... my name's Akira. W-what about you?" I asked. What I noticed about her is that her mane were like flames, but at the same time, no. And they were moving even though she's still._

_"Solar Flare. I am an alicorn." The white horse replied._

_"What's an alicorn?"_

_"Alicorns are immortal equine beings blessed with magic and flight. You must be a half-human, with your vulpine ears and tail." Solar Flare answered._

_"Aren't you afraid of me?" I asked fearfully._

_"I have no reason to fear you, Akira." SF smiled and turned to the night sky and sighed contentedly._

_Her eternally calm voice reassured me that she meant no harm. But at the same time, I noticed a large bump near... barrel, I believe it's called. She slowly turned to me and looked at her flank._

_"Celestia."_

_"Huh?"_

_"The name that my husband and I will give to our newborn foal. Do you love your mother?"_

_"I... don't remember anything about my mother." My ears drooped as I sadly hung my head. "Except that she looked like an older version of me."_

_"You know nothing about your mother or father?"_

_"Nuh-uh." I turned to the white alicorn and sat down with my legs crossed as I frowned. "Why's your hair all moving like that even though you're still?"_

_"My mane? I am not sure, but I have learned not to question why it is like that, Akira."_

_"I don't get it. Your name's Solar Flare, but you're calm."_

_"The same way why you are called Akira, but that you hold darkness within."_

_"Is it bad?" I asked._

_"No. In fact, light and darkness are opposites that balance each other, as the sun and the moon do. However, good and evil cannot co-exist together as the two are unfathomably different." The alicorn explained as she looked up at the night sky, her fiery mane billowing in the wind. "Just as I know that you are born in another time, and this world we cherish rests in your hooves."_

_"Hands." I corrected. "But I'm only a little kid. What can I do?"_

_"Fate frowns on your mere existence. But your heart burns with hope for the future." My alicorn friend cryptically replied. "I doubt that you would be the type to simply back down in fear, my half-human friend."_

_The both of us laughed together as the stars twinkled and I smiled proudly. Unfortunately... I had to go, and I stood up and bade my newfound friend goodbye, intending to come back and visit one day..._

_**[End Flashback]**_

* * *

"Are yah alright, 'Kira?" Applejack asked.

"Yeah." The dark orange mare smiled. "The first thing I'm gonna do when I get outta here is nuke his existence."

Cold shivers were sent down the light orange mare's spine as she cringed and then frowned. "Listen here, don't nuke 'im."

"Why not?"

"Crimsie HAD to turn you into a pony to save your life, 'Kira." Pinkie Pie interrupted. "I also thought that he wouldn't leave you alone on your own after what happened to you."

"Pinkie's right. Me 'an Applebloom fight all the time, but ah would never 'bandon my little sis on her own. Ahm pretty sure that Rarity here would do the same if her sister's in danger and Dash would too... if Scoots were in danger."

"Speaking of... where are they, anyhow?" Akira inquired.

"Dashie and Rarity left already. We're the last ones." The party master giggled.

"Sure... I just realized something."

"Wut?"

"You're brain damaged." Akira bluntly answered.

"Awww... thanks! No one has complimented me like that before." Pinkie grinned.

"You do know that coulda been an insult, right?" Applejack asked.

It was almost sunset and soon after the mares left did the younger Hayashi sensed the eclipse pass by quickly and turn into the moon. She drifted off to sleep, even though her equine body was covered with bandages.

_**Five days later...**_

It was morning, and Akira woke up to see a unicorn doctor smiling while telekinetically holding a clipboard.

"How was your day?" The doctor asked.

"Fine? Why are you here?"

"It seems that your entire body has healed itself over time. However... you are to stay away from strenouous activity so to avoid reopening your injuries." The doctor explained. "You are free to go, Ms. Kira."

"I thought that I was going to stay here to recuperate."

"Ah, but your entire body has an ability to regenerate lost cells-"

"Do you mean a healing factor, doctor?" The dark orange mare cleared her throat.

He nodded, prompting Akira to step foot on the smooth floor on her hind hooves. The female half-human/dark orange mare was completely surprised and it took her little to no time adjusting to her equine form.

"How are you feeling?" The doctor asked.

"I'm feeling... fine, I guess?" Akira nodded with a confused look and absentmindedly stared at the floor for a moment. "Doctor... where are my clothes?"

"Oh? All I could find on you prior to your admittance would be a thick red jacket. And it's hot outside. Are you sure you still want to wear it?"

"Yeah. It feels weird not wearing them even though clothes are optional. But for me, it's normal to wear clothes."

The doctor nodded again and left, prompting the dark orange mare to slowly trot towards the door and hesitated for a moment as she stared at the folded red jacket on the table. Soon after she put it on, it felt good to be back, seeing as most of the bandages were taken off, save for the ones on her chest. It covered most of her chest and front legs, save where her hooves should be.

As her legs regained their strength, the dark orange-coated, brown and red maned mare solemnly walked out of the hospital into Ponyville itself and looked back for a moment; she smiled and left.

* * *

_**Ponyville**_

As expected, there was hustle and bustle in the small village. Unfortunately, her stomach was growling loudly as she walked. It felt weird being a pony; how she now is more inclined to be more social when in fact is naturally anti-social. The clean air that she breathed in wasn't like the fresh forest air that she was used to, but air was air, no matter where.

"Hmmm... what I would do for some food right now..." The dark orange mare thought. "All I can remember are her tearful eyes as she used her magic to seal Nanaki into my body. After all these years, I wonder where Solar Flare could-"

Her thoughts were interrupted when a gamboge pegasus filly fell off her scooter and crashed. Not intending for the filly to fall, Akira caught the filly and frowned at her as she brought her back on her hooves.

"You should watch where you're going." Akira scolded. "I just got out of the hospital."

"I'm so sorry, ma'am. I didn't mean to bump into-" The filly hung her head sadly as she sighed.

"Forget it. You're forgiven." The dark orange mare said in a sincere tone.

"I'm Scootaloo. What's yours?"

"The name's Akira."

"Isn't it a bit hot with that jacket on, 'Kira?" Scootaloo asked when she noticed the massive red jacket. Her eyes gleamed when she took notice of a small ring around the dark orange mare's neck. "What's that 'posed to be?"

"My wedding ring. Even after my late husband and I renewed our vows, we chose to wear our wedding rings around our necks like a pendant." Akira answered.

"What happened to 'im?"

"He... passed away. Soon after that, I was separated from all my foals. My oldest is actually adopted, and she's currently responsible for the other three." The dark orange mare frowned. "And yes, I'm actually a widow. Wait, why the heck am I telling this!?"

Before the gamboge filly asked a question, two fillies came along. One of them being a white unicorn and a lemon-coated, bow-toting Earth pony. She can guess that the three are friends and their flanks... are blank.

"Scootaloo, are you alright?" The white uncorn filly asked.

"Yeah, 'Kira caught me." Scootaloo grinned at her friend. "This is Sweetie Belle, and the other one's-"

"Something tells me you're Applejack's little sister." Akira interrupted.

"Yup. Hey, how'd you get your cutie mark?" Applebloom inquired. She quickly glanced at a black fist engulfed in flame inside a golden ring.

"You don't wanna know." The dark orange mare flatly replied.

"But we DO wanna know!" All the fillies stared at her with pleading eyes. "Please?"

"No."

"Pleeease?"

"No."

"Pleeease!?" They tried one more time.

"Oh, fine. I'll tell you. I'm a martial artist." Akira quickly answered.

"What's a martial artist?" Applebloom asked. "Is it a kind of art?"

"Sorta. Except... that no paints or colors are involved. A martial artist is a practitioner of a fighting style, whether it be armed or unarmed. But here's the thing: me an' my brother come from a family of ninjas."

"Coool! Can you teach us?" Sweetie Belle's eyes gleamed.

"No. 'Sides, you have magic for that. Martial arts is for the most part, physical. And I'm giving you ideas, aren't I?"

"Yup!"

"Gah!" Akira groaned and facehoofed. "Look, I don't want anyone getting any ideas from me, okay. We just met, and I don't expect anyone to look up to me... or like me for that matter. Please, just... leave me alone."

"Awwww... But you're soo cool!" Scootaloo happily shouted. "I heard from Pinkie that you took on an entire army of changelings on your own and that you're from another world. Is it true?"

"Pinkie told you that? It's true that I'm from another world, but... I'm only here because of my brother. And my pet." The dark orange mare quickly answered.

"Is it true that you can burst into flames when you're mad?" Applebloom inquired.

"You don't wanna know how that will go. The only time that will happen is if there's a reason for me to get mad."

"But-"

"Zip it and leave me alone. Just go and... bother somepony else... like my brother." Akira sighed.

"Awww... but we can't find 'im." The lemon filly groaned.

"You could play with us." Scootaloo suggested.

"It'll be fun!" Sweetie Belle added. "Please?"

"Come to think of it, these fillies remind me of my kids. I can't really spend time with Scarlet anymore, seeing as she's already working in Station Square most of the time. But then again, I spend most of the time with Izumi. I miss my family already. I had to send them away to Tails' for a while so they won't get in the way." Akira thought as she rolled her eyes and looked down at the fillies. "There's no single way that I'm gonna let 'em come with-"

"Awww... you're foalsitting. You're so cute." Cadence walked in and made that "wubby face" that Rainbow Dash did. "Oooh..."

"Oh, it's you. Why are you still here?" The dark orange mare frowned as she flatly asked.

"Hmm, I don't remember. Except that I used to foalsit before I became married. I think that you have experience with foals, 'Kira." The pink alicorn smiled.

"Okay, fine. I DO have four foals back home. I'm married, okay!?" Akira growled.

"Anything in your mind, 'Kira?"

"What brings you here to Ponyville, Princess Cadence?" Scootaloo asked.

"Me and Shining Armor are just visiting. Have you three obtained your cutie marks yet?"

"No. But we're still trying to." Sweetie Belle grinned.

"Good. But... you three will get them one day." The pink alicorn nodded.

"Really?" Scootaloo leaned over, her hopes up.

"I'm sure of it."

"Okay." The three filles shouted, "CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS, MARTIAL ARTISTS, YAY!"

Soon after the CMC left, Cadence and Akira started walking and there was silence. Neither one talked.

"Are you alright, 'Kira?"

"I don't get it."

"What?" The pink alicorn asked.

"I don't get why those kids think I'm cool. I didn't do anything to deserve that."

"They like you, 'Kira. In fact, you would be a great foalsitter."

"Hey... where'd Nazou- erm, Crimson go?"

"Shining Armor's giving him magic lessons." Cadence rolled her eyes and chuckled. "I can't believe that he's a unicorn that can't use magic."

"I know." Akira shook her head in dismay. "Nazou can be a bit goofy, but he cares a lot about family... seeing as he was the only one who saw my real mother."

"What happened to her?"

"Dunno. All I know is that she looked like an older version of myself except without the red bits and the fang marks. Oh, and she was kind-hearted. Hey, Cadence, what happened to your mother?"

"Someone took her away. My father died before I was born." The pink alicorn hung her head sadly.

"Looks like we both have one thing in common: We both have missing mothers and dead fathers." The dark orange mare gave a wry chuckle and burst into laughter as she looked up at the sky. "You should teach Twilight the translation spell. I figured that alicorns would know Neighponese."

"How old are you?"

"What the!? Why do you wanna know?" Akira scowled.

"Well, since you're married like me and all, I would want to know a thing from somepony like you."

"I'm still in my early twenties. In equine years, eight."

"You're THAT young!? I expected you to be much-"

"Don't. Call. Me. Old." The dark orange mare quickly glared at the alicorn with emphasis on every word and showed her teh ring that she wore as a necklace. "My husband and I wore our rings like necklaces because we technically married in secret the first time."

"Your story made me think of my parents, and they had the same situation. Hey, when this is all over, why don't I visit you one time."

"Save your breath, Cadence. You don't even know any space-time teleportation spells." Akira deadpanned.

"Oh, hello, you two." A new voice greeted.

"Twilight Sparkle, I presume? Have we met?"

"Huh? But we just met in the hospital yesterday." Twilight asked with a perplexed look.

"My head's been bashed so many times that I can be a bit forgetful. On the plus side, I don't feel anything if anyone smacks my head with a dictionary." Akira flatly replied. "How is it that you know Princess Celestia?"

"Oh, Princess Celestia's my aunt. And Twily's her student." Cadence smiled. "When she heard about you, I haven't seen her that scared. Something tells me you did something to her."

"I know I heard of her somewhere, but I didn't do anything horrible." The dark orange mare shook her head.

_**[Akira's Memories, 2nd Encounter]**_

_After all I did, even though I've done it, that portal still opened up to me. I was completely dumbfounded. But still, that forest was still intact even after my rampage eighteen years ago. Last I remember, my alicorn friend Solar Flare mentioned a foal named Celestia. When I entered the portal, it was largely the same, save for... is that a white dot?_

_As I walked closer and closer, the dot became a small white pink-maned alicorn. Whoever it was, I'll bet that it was a test of sorts. An awkward silence pervaded the air as I stared at the little alicorn, and I can tell that she's a bit nervous just looking at me. I know she's a filly because of her slender build and feminine voice. Except that the voice sounded much younger and she looked a lot like she was going to cry._

_"So... you must be Solar Flare's daughter." I asked the alicorn filly._

_"Y-yeah. Who... are you?" The filly asked._

_"Something tells me that she wanted me to babysit you for awhile." I answered. "My name's Akira, and you are?"_

_"Celestia."_

_"Are you scared of me?"_

_"A little bit. Did I do anything to you?"_

_"No, you didn't do anything to me." I shook my head and frowned. "Seems that you inherited the same coat and the same aura. Even your mane's moving when you're not."_

_"Aura?" Celestia asked._

_"Every life form has a special field of energy to their own, but it can't be seen with normal eyes." I explained. "It's basically an extension of your soul."_

_"...Oh, what's with your ears? And why do you have three tails?" The white alicorn filly inquired._

_"I've always had vulpine ears and a single tail when I was a kid. But I obtained two more eight years ago."_

_"How'd you get' em?"_

_"It's nothing."_

_"What are you?"_

_"Hmph, asking lots of questions, you little alicorn filly you." I smiled a bit as I mussed up her mane some. "I'm half-human."_

_The filly called Celestia decided not to question my answer and looked on as I stood up and took on the surroundings. I tried not to think about that ill-fated day, and I sensed her wanting to know my problem and simply answered, "You're wondering why I don't smile."_

_She asked me about my eyes, and that was all I she can know about me. I can't just tell a foal about my lethal memory and sanity-draining curse! To make things slightly worse, everything I said sounded funny and Celestia doubled on the grass laughing her head off._

_I realized that she was laughing at me and blushed at that. Wait, I'm NOT supposed to blush at that. I sighed to myself and let it slide, seeing as my "charge" is trying her best not to hurt my feelings._

_The white alicorn filly asked me about my age and I explained to her the age difference between humans and equines... which got sidetracked into these things called "cutie marks". I was slightly amused when she asked about my fang marks. But when she asked about my sister, my mood sank. She watched as I took a couple steps forward and sat down, staring at the sky then shook my head._

_Unfortunately, before I could say anything, Celestia realized that we were lost. And all of a sudden, she challenges me to a race and bolted. I waited until the alicorn filly was a speck on the horizon and burst into flames, transforming into my vulpine form and dashed after her. When I caught up to her, she was completely surprised to see that I was running as fast as her flying and by the time the both of us reached home, I stopped and reverted back to my normal form and smirked at the alicorn filly as I crossed my arms._

_"Nopony should be able to burst into flames and live!? Only phoenixes can do that!" Celestia exclaimed._

_"You are right, 'Celly. Your foalsitter is none other than the mystical Three-Tailed Demon." A kind voice interrupted._

_"Mother!? Then..." The white alicorn filly gasped and stared at me with complete shock. "How did you-"_

_"I was half-expecting her dark side to manifest itself. But it seems that the Elements of Harmony neutralized the darkness imbued within." The voice came from a silver-coated, fiery-maned alicorn. "Isn't that right, Akira?"_

_"I would have to agree with Celestia in the sense of how did you know who I was!? Nobody SHOULD BE ABLE to know about my existence!" I answered with complete surprise at the alicorn mare._

_"I never would have guessed that you would eventually become corrupted by the ancient evil and still be able to come. It seems that within the darkness that you hold, there is a light in your heart that refuses to die out." Solar Flare replied with a calm and cryptic tone as she smiled at the both of us, her fiery mane moving. "How was it?"_

_"Mother, she was scary at first, but as the day went by, I got to know her a bit. But she's too serious!" Celestia protested._

_"I don't know what to say... Except that it was fun." I cleared my throat._

_Akira, why don't you lighten up a little bit?" The fiery alicorn chuckled. "You managed to learn a thing or two from 'Celly. I know the horror that you faced eight years ago. But I am amazed to see that you are after all, the same filly from ten years ago. In your case, of course. Time progresses quickly here, after all."_

_"Figures." I shook my head and faced the portal. "Anyway, I have to go now."_

_"Awww... already?" Celestia groaned._

_"Duh. It's only a matter of time before it's too late."_

_"What?"_

_"Nothing. Best be going now." I quickly answered as I waved goodbye to the two alicorns. "See ya... Trollestia."_

_I intended to nickname her as "Tia", but it came out as "Trollestia. Oh well._

_**[Flashback End]**_

* * *

_**Ponyville**_

"Are you alright?" Twilight asked.

"I thought I'd forgotten who she was." Akira muttered. "Weird."

"What?"

"Either I'm older than Princess Celestia or it's the other way around. Except... I forgot she's immortal." The dark orange mare shrugged.

"W-wait. You met Auntie Celestia!?" Cadence gaped.

"I think. It's been awhile since-"

"You may... wanna... look up." The younger Sparkle nervously chuckled.

"Why?" Akira inquired.

"In three... two... one..."

Before she was able to notice, Shining Armor and Crimson suddenly fell from the sky and landed on the dark orange mare.

"Waargh!" Akira screamed for a moment and several anger marks appeared all around her head as she was lying on the floor.

"Uhhh..." Shining Armor quickly got off and stared awkwardly at the dark orange mare.

"Hey, kid sister? Are... you alright?" Crimson gulped as he looked down at his younger sister.

The dark orange mare quickly recovered and stared darkly at the two unicorn stallions. Several anger marks appeared on her forehead as she suddenly exploded and shouted, "I'm gonna... NUKE YOUR EXISTENCES!"

"D-did she just... burst into flames?" The older Sparkle gulped as his face turned blue with shock.

"Y-yeah." The older Hayashi turned to SA and gulped in fear. "We might... want to... RUN!"

The two stallions cantered away as the dark orange mare burst into flames and screamed angrily, scaring even Twilight and Cadence...

* * *

Meanwhile, in Canterlot...

"Do we have any volcanoes, 'Tia?" Luna asked.

"No. I can sense 'her' aura." Celestia remarked. "Oh, right."

The white alicorn forgot about the letter she was writing and rolled it up, and gave it to Enzo. It was clear that she was having fun watching Philomena and Enzo play with each other... and smiled.

* * *

Back in Ponyville...

"You... pick NOW!?" Akira clenched her teeth in anger, her rage rising.

_"S-see!? Urgh, this is WHY you should NEVER ever make her angry!" Crimson turned to Shining Armor and quickly turned back, his sister in a rage and ran. "You don't want to see her go nuclear."_

Twilight and Cadence watched as both stallions were running in fear from the dark orange mare. But then she went back to normal saving the two stallions when a familiar timebird appeared and roosted on Akira's head, calming her down. Shining Armor and Crimson Edge breathed a sigh of relief and fell onto the grass.

The pink alicorn opened the quiver and brought out a scroll with her magic. Instead of the massive scroll that the mahogany-maned unicorn sent, it was a small, simple scroll of parchment with Celestia's seal. It started like this:

_[Dear Crimson Edge,_

_Despite being an immortal alicorn, I am powerless to stop the ancient evil. As of late, memories of a certain half-human woman have resurfaced from the back of my mind. As such, I am sending my faithful student, Twilight Sparkle, and the Captain of the Royal Guard, Shining Armor to help you in your quest. In addition, the other Element Bearers will be of assistance to you. It seems that fate has brought you and that woman here, and I will be waiting here in Canterlot. _

_With Regards,_

_Princess Celestia, Solar Monarch of Equestria.] _

"Five years. The last bit of my memories restored." Akira muttered.

"What are you talking about?" Cadence asked.

"Looks like the inevitable is coming. It's time that alicorn and I meet face to face once again."

"You're not enemies with her, are you, 'Kira?"

"Thankfully, no. But unfortunately, Ponyville's no place for me something like this."

"_Y'know, I was thinking of-" Crimson suggested._

"It's YOUR FAULT that you used a powerful transformation spell. Ugh, now we have to wait for the full moon until that can happen." Akira snapped. "Let's see... ah... three unicorns, one alicorn and an Earth pony. Enzo, we're using space-time teleportation magic here."

Enzo chirped as her owner looked up and flew towards the middle, surrounded by the Sparkles and the Hayashi siblings. A huge magical circle surrounded the five and its eyes turned white, engulfing them in a blue aura. At the same time, Sugarcube Corner, Sweet Apple Acres, Carousel Boutique, the cottage near Everfree Forest and a random low-lying cloud near Ponyville were engulfed in a blue light and the ten ponies disappeared...

=Chapter 5 End=

* * *

From the next chapter on, it's gonna focus more on the Sparkle siblings as they are teh REAL main characters. I severely downgraded her to the point that Akira's considered a minor character, but she is somehow befriended by Cadence and the CMC here. Oh, and her infamous anger is used for comedic effect.


	6. Of Hidden Truths and Forgotten Memories

_**In someplace that I don't know of whatsoever...**_

"Well, that was weird." Twilight muttered to herself.

"Okay... In retrospect, I should have Enzo teach you- no wait, scratch that." A new voice replied.

"Scratch what?"

"There's no single- Gah! You... you're a unicorn!?" The new voice gasped.

Twilight Sparkle gaped in fear for a moment as she looked up. She was completely surprised that a moment ago, there was a dark orange-coated, brown and red-maned Earth pony mare, but in its place was a tall (by pony standards, mind you) human figure. Her brown and red mane was recognizable, but it was slighty strange on how the figure has a pair of brown vulpine ears and three brown, bushy, white-tipped tails but had a human body. "Wait. What are you?"

"Have we met?" The half-human woman leered at the purple unicorn.

"I could say the same to you."

"Figures. Well, no use asking each other questions here."

The two younger siblings walked/trotted along as they looked around in a new area. And no, it's a different TM Gate... wherever that might be. An awkward silence pervaded the area as the half-human woman looked down at the unicorn mare.

"So... do you have a family?" Twilight asked.

"Yeah. Gotta brother, an' four kids, erm foals. What about you?"

"I have a sister-in-law, and she's beautiful, she's kind, she's caring and-"

"I get the point! Cadence, I presume?" The half-human woman interrupted.

"Ye- Wait! How do YOU know about Cadence?"

"I don't remember, and I hate my memory lapses already." She shook her head and frowned.

"My name's Twilight Sparkle. What's yours?"

"Akira." Akira nodded and looked down at the unicorn as she crossed her arms. "I suppose you're curious about what I am. For starters, I'm half-human."

"Then what's the other half?"

"Kitsune."

"That's strange. I thought those were old pony tales."

"Humans considered unicorns and pegasi to be myths. They believed that only the pure of heart can see them. And when they meant pure of heart, they meant innocent and uncorrupted. Like children. I find it strange that ponykind would consider kitsune to be myths, too."

Twilight nodded and smiled at the half-human woman, and Akira smiled back at the purple unicorn mare. And they both giggled. It was funny, as they're both the younger sibling in their families, and the two are both powerful. Even stranger that the half-human woman might as well be older than Celestia herself... but we might as well have headaches trying to do as Princess Celestia is immortal.

It was largely the same, save for a magenta aura surrounding her equine body and an orange aura emanating from the half-human woman. And for some reason, there are two equine figures with a magenta aura and a light blue aura.

"What... was that!? What are these things?" The purple unicorn gasped and shouted in a surprised manner.

"Hmmm, I remember telling a certain alicorn about this at one point; I thought that humans were the only ones with an aura."

"Aura?"

"An aura is basically an extension of your soul, just as a weapon is an extension of your limbs." The half-human woman explained. "However, it can't be seen with normal eyes and the ability to see them is usually limited to Nazou and myself."

"How do you know this, 'Kira?"

"Kagayaki Yūgure, no... Twilight Sparkle, I know this because it's a natural ability passed down from generation to generation in my human family. I suppose that you're going to copy my sealing abilities, too?"

"Wait, it's been in your family for many generations?"

"Can you please stop asking me questions and demonstrate by teleporting to their direction!?" Akira snapped. "Even with my eyes and my aura-sensing ability, this forest still puts a damper on 'em."

* * *

_***With Shining Armor and Cadence***_

"Whoa, that was weird. I never thought that we would end up in the Everfree Forest of all places." Shining Armor shook his head. "Are you alright, Cadence?"

The pink alicorn nodded as they walked and giggled at the thought of the name, "Hikaru." and thought of how she met Akira back in the first TM Gate. She was almost dead from all her injuries, and yet still alive. Princess Celestia gave a shocked look when she heard the name, and the dark orange mare seems to know her somehow. Then there's the fact that she has a human form. Everything that has happened so far since her husband's "seizure/heart attack/whatever it's supposed to be" for some reason were perplexing.

The royal couple walked on and Cadence stopped the moment she heard hoofsteps and a pair of golden eyes that gleamed in the darkness. Feeling apprehensive, she found a rock and threw it straight and heard somepony yelp in pain.

"Ow! What did you do THAT for!?" The voice groaned. "Well, at least we found you two."

"Is... that you, 'Kira?" Cadence leered at the voice. "Where are you?"

To answer her question, Twilight and a humanoid woman with vulpine ears and three tails appeared. Shining Armor didn't recognize who she was until he stared at her red jacket and golden yellow eyes, which were the only things that he could recognize.

"Right here." Akira flatly replied. "I didn't expect you to be an alicorn, though."

Twilight Sparkle and Shining Armor (Yūgure and Hikaru)* cantered toward each other in a manner that is highly reminescent of a family reunion. Then the two looked up at the half-human woman.  
_AN:Akira "renames" people/ponies on an occasional basis... and unfortunately, can't do that to Cadence. Oh well. I figured that they would be part of the Sparkle family, so I couldn't resist the urge to do that. Their family name, Kagayaki, means "Sparkle." So, I'm trying not to go overboard on the gratuitious Neighponese. At this point, Akira knows the pony dialect enough. It's somewhat similar to our English, except change "body" to "pony". _

"I thought you were a dark orange Earth pony mare." Shining Armor/Hikaru gave a confused look as he turned to the half-human and looked up.

"Well, that's what I go for while I'm here." Akira sat down and shook her head.

"What are you doing?"

"Sitting down, why else? Mostly to show that I'm not that intimidating and that I need to tell you three something. And yes, I know about Celestia." The half-human woman sighed as her eyes of gold softened. "The three of you have many questions that needed to be answered, seeing as my older brother's being vague about it. His first nickname's rather fitting, after all."

"Then why did you tell us all of those things back at the hospital?" The white unicorn stallion asked. "You were telling us as if... we would believe the entire thing."

Akira told the Sparkles about how it all started with a dragon corrupted by hatred and drove demons to extinction. She also told of how the evil dragon's soul was sealed inside her body in an effort to prevent more deaths at the cost of a normal life and recollected Nazou's near-fatal first encounter with the dragon's body. In addition, she also told of her brother's first awakening in a golden era called the 30th Century and how he thwarted the enemy's extinction attempt with the help of a certain moon rabbit and was consequently sealed away elsewhere. Next was her awakening in a horrible future where very few people know love and friendship and the ill-fated day, "Crimson End." In her own words, it was basically a successful extinction attempt that drew out her curse that darkened her skin somewhat and gave her infamous eyes of gold all while robbing all of her memories and nearly transformed into a completely insane psychopath if not for her late grandmother's last words. After that, she told of her encounters with the alicorn Solar Flare and her daughter Celestia.

Translation:She comes from the distant past, always fighting FOR the Earth's existence even despite being aligned with darkness and has met her possible grandmother and befriended/foalsat her aunt.

"So, you're saying that-" Shining Armor/Hikaru replied.

"-you are the legendary 'Three-Tailed Demon'-" Twilight/Yūgure continued.

"-And that you're from the past!?" Cadence finished. "How old are you!?"

"That's the gist of it. To be honest, I'm actually surprised that alicorns grow so fast and that YOU have the nerve of asking about MY age." Akira calmly answered, then glared at the three, especially at the pink alicorn. "However... despite what I did, there were a couple of people that I spared before I went too far."

"Too far?" Cadence inquired.

"Nothing." Akira groaned as she crossed her arms. "So, what now?"

"Looks like we have no choice but to travel together, I guess. Strength in numbers?"

"Yeah." The half-human woman nodded.

* * *

_***With Crimson Edge and Rarity***_

"I cannot believe you of all ponies have the nerve to rob me of my beauty sleep! And you pick now to forcibly teleport me to the Everfree Forest!? Is this your idea of a sick joke?" Rarity shouted angrily.

_"Okay, okay. I get the point! It was a horrible idea to use a group space-time teleportation spell to Canterlot." Crimson Edge sighed. "I get the point that I'm still inexperienced with unicorn magic. Heck, I'm not even a real unicorn either. I casted a transformation spell on myself so that nopony would freak out over my real appearance. Unfortunately, the cost of that was my ability to cast magic, so there."_

"Whatever do you mean, Sir Crimson?" The white unicorn mare asked.

_"I don't think I've told you the truth, Rarity. It's true that I look like a unicorn, but the truth is..." The unicorn stallion's words trailed off as he gave a wry smile, his eyes concealed as he looked down. _

His ears perked up and looked around as he heard rustling sounds, then trotted closer as the bush continued to move and leered at it. The bush continued to move and rustle until a pair of eyes appeared amidst the shadows and teh sound of yelping can be heard. When Crimson opened it, it turned out to be Fluttershy hiding in there, cowering in fear of her own shadow; ironic being that there IS no light. Or that she could be scared of the dark.

"Fluttershy, thank goodness we found you." Rarity breathed a sigh as she pulled the butter yellow pegasus up. "Are you alright?"

"Umm... I might as well be." Fluttershy slowly nodded and looked at the unicorns. "I know this forest very well, so- Is something the matter with Crimson?"

_"It's nothing." The unicorn stallion shook his head and smiled as he turned to the mares. "But whatever I was about to say, it's not in an inappropriate sense."_

The party of three trotted along in the darkness that is the Everfree Forest and eventually, they found an open clearing bathed in moonlight.

* * *

_***With Akira and the Sparkles***_

"I can't believe that you took on an entire army of changelings and still managed to survive!" Shining Armor quipped. "I'm just surprised that you haven't completely succumbed to all of your lethal injuries."

"There's that. Even though I'm only slightly older than you, I'm still smarter than I look." Akira replied.

"What's that supposed to mean!?"

"Hey, I'm not implying anything. At least my memory's better!" The half-human woman sighed.

"Looks like they're having fun." Cadence giggled as she turned to the purple unicorn.

"They sure are, Cadence." Twilight looked at her sister-in-law and chuckled as she glanced back at her older brother.

"Take that back!" Akira growled as her golden-yellow eyes narrowed and gradually turned to blood-red.

"I'll bet that you can't even put a candle against my magic-" Shining Armor taunted.

"So what if I can't put a candle to your magic!? I can still break your pansy barrier AND buck you into next year!" The dark orange mare glared at the unicorn stallion.

"Hey, there's no reason to be fighting EACH OTHER!" Twilight interrupted the bickering. "I mean it!"

"Fine..." Akira sighed and glared at Shining Armor. "There's no reason for a three-hundred year old three-tailed vixen like me to be arguing with someone like you."

"..."

"Three hundred is young for a kitsune!" The dark orange mare blushed a bit and gavean intimidating glare. "Shut up."

"No, I should be the one who should apologize for my foalish behavior." The older Sparkle scratched teh back of his head with his hoof.

"I would have to do the same. And I have a lot of anger issues." Akira replied. "Which we should leave at that."

"Sure."

"Oh... I see. Are you alright?" The younger Sparkle asked.

"For now." The dark orange mare muttered. "What I would do for some anger management classes..."

Silence overtook the forest once again, and no more words were uttered. It was so quiet that the half-human woman growled deeply, stopped walking and burst into flames, transforming into a brown and red vulpine with a wolf-like build. Where her wrists should be, a pair of ring-inhibitors covered them, and above the golden rings were a pair of charcoal-colored chain/arm weight hybrids. In addition, her black paws emphasized the shine of the rings and somewhat blended into the chain/arm weight hybrids as her brown, white-tipped tails moved gracefully like an ink brush. Shock filled the Sparkles' faces as they witnessed this unusual event, confirming Cadence's suspiscions as the brown and red vulpine suddenly bolted, leaving behind a normal-looking item with strange properties.

* * *

_***With Rarity, Fluttershy and Crimson Edge***_

_"It's faint, but I can sense an evil presence nearby." Crimson thought as he looked around. "Wonder if I should leave 'em behind or have 'em follow?" _

"Umm... C-crimson?" Fluttershy gulped with fear as she bashfully turned to the unicorn stallion. "I don't like where this is going."

_"You too, Rarity?" The unicorn stallion asked as he faced the white unicorn mare._

Rarity nodded with an apprehensive look as she turned to the stallion. "I suppose you have an idea about this."

_"I don't. Come to think of it... I haven't seen any signs of AJ, RD or Pinkie." Crimson Edge's body tensed up as he turned away from the mares, assumed a feral-ish pose* and snorted; his calm eyes turning into a glare and bolted before either one could notice. _

Like in the previous scenario, there was silence. But for some reason, the butter yellow pegasus felt a strange presence far away, seeing as she practically knows this place front and back and fearfully stared at the distance, then went after the stallion, prompting the white unicorn to canter after her friend.

* * *

_***Fourth Wall Moment***_

"Both the Hayashi siblings bolted away from their respective parties, and there was something off about them-" Pinkie Pie narrated as she read the script, only to be interrupted by a loud throat clearing.

_**[HEY! What the heck are YOU doing here!? This is MY JOB!] **_

"But you have writer's block!" The pink mare protested. "I wanna help out, too."

_**[No! Erm, uhhh... this is a horrible time to be arguing with me on the fourth wall!] **_

Pinkie Pie nodded and looked at the author, and jumped back into the screen, while the author continued to type, chronicling the rest...

* * *

_**Everfree Forest, Moonlit Clearing, Omniscient TPV**_

The brown vulpine and the crimson stallion finally stopped at the clearing and stopped, their eyes locked in pure horror as they saw the unconscious bodies of Rainbow Dash and Applejack and an injured Pinkie Pie fighting off an evil-looking mist with visibly intimidating demonic bloody-red eyes.

"AJ... Dashie... Well, here goes everything." The bubbly mare gave an angry face as she prepared her party cannon.

The party cannon fired a cannonball instead of the usual confetti and party supplies. It punched through the mist, but nothing happened. Pinkie gulped for a moment and ran towards the mist, intending to buck it... but fails and ends up being severely beaten and pushed back. She was about to be hit when Crimson Edge and a brown and red vulpine intervened before anyone else could be hurt.

"Crimsie, took you long enough." Pinkie quipped. "Where are the others?"

_"They're comin'. What happened to 'em?" Crimson inquired. _

"All I know is that they were like that when I found 'em." The pink mare shook her head. "Who's this with you? And what IS that thingy!?"

_"This is Akira in her vulpine form. I have one too, but y'know, the spell won't let me go back to my human form. Oh, and the guy you're facing is Nanaki, one half of the 'Absolute Evil', namely, the soul." The unicorn stallion explained. "Physical attacks won't work, so we'll hafta hold him off until the others come in."_

"You're not a pony, are you?"

_"Would any of you care if me an' my kid sister weren't?" The older Hayashi retorted. _

"Nuh-uh. Pony or not, I would still wanna make friends with 'em. 'Sides, friends are friends, even if they're different." Pinkie answered as she smiled back at the stallion. "**Friendships can transcend lifetimes**, Crimsie."

_"Are you alright?" _

The bubbly mare nodded and winced when she felt a painful sensation from her back leg, but she brushed it off and was caught off guard when she looked at an unconscious Applejack with her signature Stetson hat a couple feet from where it should be, then at her cyan pegasus friend and was about to take another step closer when Crimson Edge suddenly teleported in front of the mare and braced herself as the "resurrected" soul that is Nanaki, threw a bolt of black lightning at him.

_"GUUUUUURRAAAAAAAAGH!" Crimson screamed in agonizing pain as he gave a pained look at Pinkie Pie, the black lightning coursing through his equine body then back at the mist. "What the... heck do... you want... with... this place!?" _

"Simple. This planet is beyond saving. This planet needs to be reset, devoid of all that holds life. And I hold a special hatred against the two of you and a certain alicorn..." The voice replied.

At the mention of a "certain alicorn", Akira reverted back to her human form and flicked her wrist, summoning a familiar weapon; her eyes of gold gleaming in the moonlight, glaring at her former possessor. Her stance was highly reminescent of that traumatic event thirteen years ago; Crimson Edge and Pinkie Pie looked in complete shock as the younger half-human briefly turned to them with a slightly sorrowful look.

_"No, you're not thinking of doing it, are you!?" Crimson's eyes widened at the thought, as he had an idea of what his younger sister's thoughts should be. _

"It's enough that I lost the two people that I cared about the most. It's enough that I am eternally cursed to bring misfortune to all I befriend." Akira replied without looking back. "Anyway... get 'em outta here."

"What about you, 'Kira?" Pinkie whimpered. "What are YOU gonna do?"

"Don't worry about me. Just go." The younger half-human firmly answered.

"But you're injured! Won't you need some help with-"

"I can handle myself just fine!" Akira glared at the pink mare, then her eyes softened for a moment. "Sorry. I didn't mean to brush you off like that, but..."

Before she could finish her sentence, Nanaki took the chance to knock her out for a moment and immobilize Crimson Edge and Pinkie Pie in a dark void. Her eyes widened with shock as she fell to her knees and watched her former posessor then proceeded to absorb their magical energies and corrupt their bodies. That feeling of fear and helplessness overtook her as it reminded her so much of the day that started it all. Instead, she summoned up all the courage that she could muster and was about to take another step when three magic blasts hit the formless mist while Cadence and Fluttershy flew in from the forest.

"W-what happened to everypony?" Fluttershy whimpered.

"T-take a look." The half-human woman turned to the butter yellow pegasus mare and bluntly answered with fear in her voice.

"Are you alright?" Cadence asked.

"I've never felt like this since... my grandmother died and Solar Flare..." Akira sighed as her words trailed off. "How'd you manage to find me?"

"Oh, I managed to meet up with Fluttershy on my way here and the unicorns locked on to your aura." The pink alicorn smiled.

"I know his dark presence enough to know where he is. But for now, we have to get everypony out of here."

Cadence nodded and noted that everypony's literally too weak and/or injured to fight. But then she noticed the half-human unroll her jacket and remove a pair of grey chain/arm weight limiters from her arm.

"How powerful are you again, 'Kira?" The pink alicorn gulped.

"With these limiters, my physical strength can balance out the Sparkles' magical prowess. Without the limiters, well... I consider it to be my last resort." The half-human woman shook her head and frowned at the thought. "Anyway, let's not think about it."

As soon as Fluttershy pulled Rainbow Dash and Applejack to safety, the unicorns finally teleported in front of Cadence and Akira with apprehensive faces, the two unicorn mares looked at the void holding Crimson Edge and Pinkie Pie, Shining Armor leering at the formless mist straight in the face. The half-human woman returned her blade and focused her energy on everypony, healing them of any minor injuries and then faced her former possessor and disappeared.

Time stopped for a moment and when she reappeared, the bubbles encasing Crimson Edge and Pinkie Pie burst, freeing the two and unfortunately, they're both unconscious. Akira picked up their unconscious bodies and glared at her former possessor, then gently dropped them on the grass; Nanaki disappeared deeper into the Everfree Forest, as if he is waiting for something...

"What do we do now, 'Kira?" Shining Armor inquired.

"First off, we need to get everypony outta here. I've got a hunch that the moment my foot is out of the Everfree Forest entrance, I'll be a pony again." Akira answered.

"Umm... are you one of those mystical foxes?" Fluttershy asked.

"Half, to be technical. C'mon, let's get outta here." The younger Hayashi firmly answered as she picked up Crimson Edge and Pinkie Pie while Twilight and Rarity telekinetically carried Rainbow Dash; Cadence and Shining Armor had Applejack.

_**Twilight Sparkle FPV**_

We all walked on in silence as we carried our friends back to the entrance, hungry, near-exhausted and emotionally drained. I looked up at 'Kira, and she responded by looking down at me... even though she literally had her hands full.

"Are you afraid of me?" 'Kira frowned as she asked me with a serious look.

"I have no reason to fear you. It's ironic, since your name means 'light' but that you-" I answered and chuckled a bit.

"I know. But in a sense, the word twilight brings together day and night." The half-human woman explained. "Dusk, however starts before the night, and I personally think that it would be a cool-sounding name... if you were a guy."

"Would Shining Armor and Cadence have different names if they were genderswapped?" I asked.

"Don't push it." She flatly replied, her gleaming eyes of gold glaring at me.

"So, you say that you know of Princess Celestia. How old are you?" I inquired.

Kira sighed and looked up at the trees for a moment and turned to me with a disdainful look. "If I tell you AND Cadence, will you stop asking about my age?"

"S-sure!" I felt myself sweatdrop at the response.

"I'm actually twenty three years old." The half-human woman quickly answered. "Oh, in equine years, I would be eight."

The moment she said her age, everypony including myself dropped everything and gave an at her, and the look on her face basically told us that she wasn't "amused."

"Oh, my." Fluttershy gasped softly. "Is it true?"

"You were expecting me to be much older, didn't you?" 'Kira smirked.

"Yes?"

"Well, no. Surprisingly enough, I didn't change much thanks to my time in Mobius." The half-human woman answered. "Come to think of it, I remember learning the pony dialect from a certain alicorn back when I was 18..."

"Something tells me that I know this alicorn very well..." I muttered. "So, do you remember anything about Solar Flare?"

"I'm not too sure."

Everypony sighed and the unconscious ponies finally woke up and stirred. Of the four, Applejack was taken by surprise while Rainbow Dash and Crimson Edge seemed happy to see her again.

_**Omniscient TPV, Everfree Forest Entrance**_

The moment Akira stepped foot on the large patch of sun, she became ponified again, and this time, her clothes disappeared into hammerspace and was about to take another step when the party of ten were greeted by the presence of a certain white alicorn. Everyone gasped at the calm alicorn as she cleared her throat and stared at the dark orange Earth pony mare and the crimson unicorn stallion and then at the Mane 6 plus the royal couple.

"**PRINCESS CELESTIA!?**" The Mane Six gasped.

"Wait, this isn't what it looks like." Cadence pleaded.

"Oh, I know." Celestia firmly answered. "I personally flew here after realizing that neither of you were back in Canterlot and waited here after raising the sun for everypony. Are you alright, Cadence?"

"Sorry for worrying you, Auntie." The pink alicorn frowned.

"Either way, I'm glad that my niece and student are-" The solar alicorn turned to a pair of unfamiliar ponies, then quickly glanced towards a dark orange brown and red-maned Earth pony mare. "That brown and red mane... those eyes of gold... it can't be!"

"Have we met?" Akira gave a confused look as she looked at Celestia.

"It has been a very long time since we crossed paths... Akira." The solar alicorn answered calmly. "I never thought I would be able to see you again."

"I would say the same, Celestia. Wow... you're sorta the same alicorn after all these years." The dark orange mare chuckled. "The last time I saw you was when you had a pink mane."

"I don't get it. How do you and Princess Celestia know each other?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"I agree with Dashie, here." Pinkie Pie added.

"Ummm... same with Pinkie... if you don't mind." Fluttershy gave a shy smile.

Applejack, Cadence and the unicorns agreed.

"I suppose I owe you an explanation, my little ponies." Celestia answered.

The solar alicorn turned to the ponies and narrated her story, her eyes closed as she recalled of her history with the ponified female half-human. Her sealed memories began to reveal themselves as she continued, everypony riveted on her flowing sorbet-colored mane. At the same time, forgotten memories began to unravel as the Akira listened intently to the solar monarch.

"...And that explains everything so far, at least how I remember it." The white alicorn answered.

"Then, who's Solar Flare?" Cadence asked.

"She's my mother/mentor." Celestia and Akira answered at the same time, then the dark orange mare looked up and frowned at the white alicorn, who responded with a calm smile.

"I don't get it." The younger alicorn shrugged her shoulders.

In response, the pink mare had a blue box with four red buttons and stood on her hind legs, pressing the top button. Strange music plays for a couple seconds in the form of an 18-second jingle as the alicorns awkwardly stared at each other.

"In any case... Akira, who is this with you?" Celestia turned to the mahogany-maned stallion. "I don't think I've seen him before."

"Princess Celestia, this is Nazou... or as everypony else calls him, 'Crimson Edge'. Onii-chan, this is Celestia." Akira introduced the two with a flat face.

"So, you must be the same one who sent the scroll."

_"Yep, I'm the one. What's with your mane?" _

"I'm not... too sure." The white alicorn cleared her throat as she gave a confused look.

"Deja vu all over again..." The ponified half-human muttered under her breath.

"Oh, that's right. I have to fly back to Canterlot for... important business." The white alicorn chuckled nervously. "Aren't you a bit-"

"AHEM!" The dark orange mare cleared her throat loudly, and thought, "There's no way I'm even going to let royalty comment about my height."

"I almost forgot. Watch out for foals and birds."

"What's that 'posed to mean?" Akira inquired.

"Your spiky mane makes a good place for birds to roost on." Celestia giggled and flew back to Canterlot.

Soon after she left, Enzo reappeared and roosted on her head as the white alicorn predicted and everypony giggled at the sight.

"What?" Akira frowned as she gave a confused look.

_"You look adorable with Enzo on your head, kid sis." Crimson snickered. _

"Awwwwwww..." Everypony gushed over and almost melted in cuteness overload.

"You look so cute with your pet on your head." Rarity smiled. "Isn't she adorable?"

"Oooh, I know! I can creep her out with Owliscious." Twilight rubbed her hooves at the thought.

"So, uhh... wanna go back to Ponyville or somethin?" Akira asked with a flat voice.

"Sure. Ah need me some help over buckin' apples at the farm." Applejack replied. "Wanna help out, too, 'Twi?"

The purple unicorn agreed and left with the orange mares towards the direction of Sweet Apple Acres. Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy and Rarity bade Crimson Edge and the royal couple goodbye and went their separate ways.

"Ah... our little sisters are growing up so fast." Shining Armor and Crimson Edge sighed dreamily as they muttered at the same time, then glared at each other. "Stop copying me! Knock it off!"

"You two are having so much fun already." Pinkie Pie giggled as she appeared in front of the two, presenting a familiar doll version of a certain two-tailed Mobian fox.

_"Pinkie... where did you get that?" Crimson asked darkly as he stared at the fox doll. _

"The author let me borrow this cute doll for Nightmare Night, silly." The pink Earth pony mare answered with oblivious glee.

_"No no no no. Don't you realize what you have done!?__" Crimson started whimpering and blubbering to himself as he trotted away; his intense fear of it overwhelming his entire being. "GET. AWAY. FROM. ME!" _

"What's wrong, Crimsie?"

_"The horror... the trauma... the embarrassment... AGH!" The older Hayashi backpedaled away from Pinkie, suddenly unnerving Shining Armor and Cadence and bolted, screaming, "CURSE YOU, TAILS DOLL! AAAAAAAAAAGHHHHH!" _

"Back to Canterlot?" Shining Armor looked at his alicorn wife.

"Back to Canterlot." Cadence nodded and tried not to giggle at Crimson's misfortune.

And so, the royal couple bid Pinkie goodbye and left for Canterlot, leaving Pinkie Pie and Crimson Edge to the devices of the Tails Doll.

_"I TOLD YOU NOT TO BRING THAT DOLL, PINKIE!" The older Hayashi angrily screamed at the pink Earth pony mare. "Don't even look at its empty eyes."_

"What would happen?" Pinkie panted as the two ran away from the now floating Tails Doll.

_"Your worst nightmare will come true." He stared darkly at Pinkie, his bright blue eyes gleaming in the trees. _

**_Meanwhile, in Sweet Apple Acres..._**

The three mares entered the massive orchard and looked at several trees in the distance. Applejack sighed again at the work that was to be done and smiled at Twilight and Akira, knowing that even somepony like her would need some help sometimes.

"Don't you have an older brother, Applejack?" 'Kira asked.

"Big Mac's sick t'day. So, ah usually do double the work buckin' all them apples." The apple farmer answered. "Is it true that you're a human from the past, 'Kira?"

"I am. To be fair, I don't know Princess Celestia in that sense, but it feels very much like we've known each other a bit." The younger Hayashi replied. "But it's kinda vague."

"How so?" Twilight inquired.

"I can tell that she was happy to see me again, and I remember her telling me about somepony named Luna, I think." 'Kira sighed. "Solar Flare, or Taiyou-sensei as I prefer to call her, is a powerful alicorn with a kind and caring heart along with a fiery aura that feels much like the warmth of light; basically an older and more powerful version of Princess Celestia... with sealing magic."

"So Princess Celestia's mother is your mentor?" The purple unicorn asked.

"Yes. In the same way that Celestia herself IS your mentor, Twilight." The orange brunette mare shook her head and turned to Applejack. "So, you just kick the trees with your back legs and the apples just fall down like that?"

"Yup." Applejack demonstrated by trotting to a nearby tree and gave a nice, strong buck; the apples fell down into a basket as the tree rustled.

Akira nodded and walked over to another tree and tried bucking it like what the younger orange mare did, but the tree only rustled a bit. "Huh, that's weird. Nothing's comin' out."

"What's wrong, sugahcube?"

"Nothing." The elder orange mare shook her head and looked up, then tried again. Nothing happened. "You guys go on ahead. I'll catch up, 'kay?"

"Suuuure... if yah say so. Don't be shy on askin' fer help." Applejack nodded and left with Twilight.

As soon as the two left, Akira turned back to the tree and muttered, "This is gonna take a while..."

_**Meanwhile, with Pinkie Pie and Crimson Edge...**_

_"Finally!" Crimson breathed a sigh of relief and fell on his haunches, his hind legs shaking intensely with a pale look on his face. "He's finally gone." _

"Crimsie... That doll's really scary." Pinkie whimpered and had a horrified look after banishing the Tails Doll. "Okay, fine. I won't bring out the Tails Doll for Nightmare Night. What did you see?"

_"The Tails Doll forced me to watch a memory of myself dancing to disco music in 70s attire with clowns." The unicorn stallion answered as he turned to the Earth pony mare. "What about you?"_

"I had a weird montage about me falling in love with Bloomberg."

_"Never speak of this again?" Crimson flatly asked. _

"Never speak of it ever again." The pink mare nodded and the two shook hooves.

_**Back in Sweet Apple Acres...**_

"Are you sure she'll be alright, sugahcube? I mean that she just got outta the hospital yesterday." Applejack inquired with a worried look.

"It's strange that she's still alive despite sustaining all those injuries, nopony should be able to survive that." Twilight answered. "When she bolted, I found this thing." She presented a shiny golden ring that had the color of gold, yet didn't have the properties of gold. Its components were more durable.

"Isn't that a bit small for a pony to wear on his or her neck?"

"The diameter of this ring is slightly smaller than that of pegasi wedding rings. Unicorn wedding rings can fit on the horn, and Earth pony wedding rings, well... even I'm not too sure about it." The purple mare explained. "Either way, its-"

She was interrupted by the sight of an explosion followed by a powerful shockwave that filled the orchard and the two mares lost their balance and fell onto the ground.

"What was that!?" The Stetson-toting mare exclaimed.

"We should check it out, then." Twilight smirked. Since copying Akira's aura-sensing ability, she was able to see everypony's auras. Especially with Earth ponies and pegasi. She closed her eyes for a moment and her surroundings became negative, save for Applejack, who had a green aura. The younger Sparkle scanned the orchard with her eyes closed and her ears twitched, alerting her to the presence of an orange aura. When she opened her eyes, she teleported away for a moment, but not before taking Applejack and the ring with her.

Akira looked up at the tree again and smiled. All the apples in that tree were picked clean and so were the surrounding ones, but she coughed a couple times as she stared at her slightly charred body and sighed. Maybe she wasn't cut out for bucking apples. It wasn't easy due to her volatile nature, but she finally did it... by punching the tree with a hoof that exploded on impact. Twilight Sparkle and Applejack teleported behind her and gasped at the sight.

"What in tarnation just happened here!?" Applejack gasped.

"Are you alr- Whoa! What happened to you?" The purple mare asked.

"I'm... okaaay..." The dark orange mare coughed. "Took me some time, but this area's clear. I gave the tree a really strong buck, but what happened is that it backfired on me, giving me this and at the very least, obtaining the apples of this area."

"You should be more careful next time, 'Kira. As much as I need help with buckin', I don't want anypony to get hurt." The apple farmer trotted over to the older mare and chuckled nervously. "How is it that you had all those cuts and scratches all over an' yer not dead yet?"

"Applejack!" Twilight reprimanded. "You shouldn't ask questions like that."

"No, it's okay. Applejack wants to know how I'm not dead despite all my injuries, that's all." Akira began. "My demonic heritage came from a cursed clan of kitsune. From them, I obtained the standard fox magic and ninjutsu along with a curse that robs the vessel of memory and sanity, while my human heritage had sealing magic and immensely strong endurance. The latter enables me to withstand anything that would be lethal under normal circumstances... with a bit of help from my wedding ring."

"You mean this thing?" Twilight looked down at the small ring on her neck. "It's too small to wear on your hooves!"

"I was wondering where that was." The dark orange mare muttered and looked up at the trees as she continued. "Anyway, you're wearing a HUMAN wedding ring. Married couples usually wear them on their right ring fingers. Think of it as a unicorn wedding ring, but much smaller. However, in my case, I wear it like a necklace."

"This ring... it's really important to you, isn't it?"

"That wedding ring is a sort of memento from my late husband and has saved my life multiple times along with my strong will and determination. Its power is drawn from the memories of your loved ones... and your friends." She answered with a serious face and a sorrowful look. "He was also the same one who adopted and took care of my oldest, who's around your age."

"Do you cherish your family very much?"

"Yeah." The dark orange mare turned to Twilight and smiled. "I'm pretty sure you two would do everything in your power to protect everypony you care about."

"I would do that for Applebloom." Applejack nodded.

"If Cadence has Shining Armor, then I would do everything in my power to make sure Spike is safe and sound." Twilight chuckled. "C'mon, let's get back to work."

"Right!" The orange mares nodded.

_**240 acres of apple trees later...**_

"Hoo-whee! Now that's what ah call a load." Applejack beamed as she proudly looked at the baskets full of apples.

"This isn't so bad." Twilight smiled. "What about you, 'Kira?"

"I came close to blowing up a large portion of Sweet Apple Acres with my strength." Akira paled as her ears drooped. "What are you going to do with them, Applejack?"

"Sell 'em, of course! But I'll give 'em tah you fer free."

"I can't just get these apples for free! They're from YOUR orchard." The dark orange mare protested.

"Ah insist! You and 'Twi helped me out and worked hard for 'em. That, an' you look like yah haven't eaten for awhile." The Stetson-toting mare replied.

"Fine... if you insist." Akira gave in and sighed as she was given a small bag of apples. "I'll see you around, then?"

"Sure!"

The dark orange mare bade the apple farmer goodbye and was about to leave when the Cutie Mark Crusaders reappear once again.

"Did you get your cutie marks yet?" The younger Hayashi flatly asked the fillies.

"I don't think so." Scootaloo groaned.

"I know kung-fu, but..." Applebloom sighed. "Maybe martial arts isn't cut out for me."

"Me too." Sweetie Belle frowned. "This is hard."

"Have you tried soloing?" Akira suggested. "Or doing something you're really good at?"

"What are YOU good at?" The gamboge filly stared at the older mare.

"I was thinking the same thing, too." Twilight chuckled.

"My cutie mark has to do with my fiery personality." The dark orange mare smirked as she answered.

"No wonder..." The younger Sparkle muttered to herself.

"What was that?" Red anger marks appeared on her forehead as the Earth pony mare was about to burst into flames.

"Nothing!" Twilight backed away and sweatdropped.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Canterlot...

"You should go out more, Luna. I mean it." Celestia cleared her throat and glared at her younger sister as the lunar alicorn was caught with a pair of glasses, a lab coat while holding an abacus in her hooves.

"Whatever do you mean, fair sister?" Luna asked with an innocent look as she quickly removed her glasses and lab coat and hid the abacus behind her back.

"Yes, we are co-rulers of Equestria, but that does not mean that we should reconnect with our subjects every now and then." The solar alicorn smiled. "Oh, and I have met Crimson Edge personally."

"What of him, 'Tia?"

"I would have to say that he also knows of the ancient evil. And I have met her personally." Celestia answered.

"Her?"

"You and her would have a field day together."

* * *

_**Back in Ponyville... **_

"So, what's Princess Luna like?" Akira inquired.

"Well, to be honest, I'm not too sure. I mostly see her on Nightmare Night, though." Twilight answered.

"What the heck's Nightmare Night?"

"Oooh, it's that special day that everypony comes out in costumes, eat candy and have lots of fun." Applebloom replied.

"An' ponies scare each other for fun-" Scootaloo added.

"And Princess Luna comes in for the fun of it." Sweetie Belle finished. "Oh, and we also have to offer a certain amount of candy to her every year."

"Costumes, scares, candy and fun? Ah... Halloween. Brings back memories." The dark orange mare sighed.

"What's Halloween?"

"It's a human holiday in which people dress up in costumes, scare each other for the heck of it and eat lots of candy all in the spirit of fun." Akira answered. "The only difference being that no one offers their candy to someone."

As the CMC and the two mares walk around the streets of the small town, a square-shaped shadow is seen above the dark orange mare; Twilight and the CMC backed away.

"Uhhh... you might wanna back away." Twilight gulped in fear.

"How come?"

"Look up." Scootaloo shouted.

Applebloom and Sweetie Belle would only look in horror as they watched several bricks, an anvil and a grand piano fall on their new friend. All those items broke, but the dark orange mare didn't move or flinch. At all. Surprisingly enough she wasn't hurt by any of them.

"Are you alright, 'Kira?" Twilight called.

"Yeah."

"Isnt' it supposed to hurt?"

"Not really. That was nothing, and I'm literally head strong." Akira chuckled. "I think I've been used as a battering ram a couple times, though."

"Sorry 'bout that!" A new voice shouted. "Are you okay?"

Everypony looked up to see Ditzy Doo above them as the grey-coated blond mailmare landed and gave a couple of inquisitive looks at the dark orange mare.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to-" Ditzy apologized.

"Nah, it's okay. At least I'm not hurt, right?" The dark orange mare smiled. "And you are?"

"I go by many names, but everypony calls me Ditzy Doo. What about you?"

"Akira."

"Muffin?"

"I'll pass- Wait, what flavor?"

"Blueberry."

"Meh, I'll pass. I'll tell my brother you said hi."

"Okey dokey then!" Ditzy saluted and flew off.

A few moments later, the five found a marketplace, complete with several tents. Akira's ears perked up when she saw a familiar item on one of the stalls and immdiately dashed there. Her golden yellow eyes gleamed as she looked around the hustle and bustle and noticed a stall with a plate of a familiar white block and stopped moving and stared at the white block.

"With that look on your face, I can tell that you are mesmerized by it." A blue Earth pony stallion chuckled.

"Is that what I think it is!?" The dark orange mare gasped.

"Yep! It took me a couple days to make tofu, and I came here all the way to Ponyville from Neighpon to sell some. Wanna buy some?"

"YES!" Akira made a fangirl squeal. "How much?"

"Three hundred bits."

"Two fifty." The dark orange mare banged the table.

"Three fifty." The blue stallion argued.

"Two hundred."

"Four hundred."

"One fifty!"

"FOUR HUNDRED FIFTY!"

"One. Hundred." Akira glared at the tofu merchant. "And that's final!"

"Oh, alright: you win. How will you pay?"

"Uhh... can I barter all my apples with three blocks of tofu?" The dark orange mare chuckled nervously.

"Are you sure you want to fork over all your apples?" The merchant asked. "You have yourself the freshest apples in all Equestria."

"But I'm broke. And I haven't eaten for four days."

"I see. THESE kind of apples have a high price back in Neighpon." The merchant answered and raised an eyebrow. "But you should at least find yourself a job for some bits."

"Thanks so much!" Akira nodded as she gave a wide smile and happily left with the blocks of tofu and was about to leave when the tofu merchant called her for an extra bag of soybeans (with 30 bits hidden inside) and graciously took it.

_**Meanwhile in Carousel Boutique...**_

"How's business for you, Rarity?" Twilight asked.

"If not booming, then splendid, Twilight." Rarity answered. "Is it true that 'Kira is not really a pony?"

"Well, she looks like a pony, and talks like a pony. But she's not a pony at the same time."

"Is 'Kira a changeling?"

"No. She is half-human."

"Half-human?" The white unicorn mare raised an eyebrow. "What of the other half?"

"Kitsune."

"You mean to say..."

"Crimson and 'Kira are actually from the distant past when strange monsters called demons were around." Twilight explained. "I remember reading some scrolls about them in the Royal Canterlot Library... Or tried to, for that matter."

"Let me guess, none of the scrolls are in Equestrian." Rarity deadpanned.

"There's that." The younger Sparkle sighed. "If only there's a way for me to be able to read those scrolls!"

The bell rang and a door opened to reveal a dark orange mare with a saddlepack full of stuff bought from the marketplace.

"Welcome to Carousel Botique. How may I help-" Rarity turned to the Earth pony mare and shrieked at the sight of her mane. "Oh, the horror! What happened to YOUR mane!?"

"何してるの？私が離せ!" [What are you doing!? Let me go!] Akira shouted angrily in Japanese as she was dragged by a violet aura.

"Now, now. That kind of mane will simply not do!" The white unicorn mare interrupted as she suddenly pushed the dark orange mare towards the mirror and the changing stall.

One clothes montage later...

"Oh, sapphires simply compliment your eyes, my dear." Rarity swooned. "How do you feel?"

"I'm fine." Akira sarcastically replied as she vigorously shook off the accessories off her glamorous mane, reverting it back to its semi-spiky self and glaring at the two mares. "My mane's fine as is."

"What was that language you spoke earlier?" Twilight inquired.

"That was the Japanese language in the human dialect, Neighponese in the pony dialect. I know... because I'm half-kitsune, remember?" The dark orange mare deadpanned. "Having trouble?"

"Yes!" The purple unicorn mare nodded.

"Wait a sec." Akira waved her right hoof and a book with a black and yellow scheme appeared out of nowhere. Twilight gave a confused look at whatever it was that the slightly older mare had on the floor and summoned it using magic.

"Japanese for Dummies?" Twilight read the title and raised an eyebrow at the dark orange mare. "I don't get it. You're not a pony, but you are fluent in Equestrian."

"Pfft, it's similar to English. I'm pretty sure that the liebery in the capital would have a tome or two about human lore." The dark orange mare retorted. "But I doubt that it can help you now; it's something that's gonna be useful later on."

"What was that?"

"It's nothing." Akira flatly replied.

"So... how long have you known Princess Celestia?" Rarity asked.

"I don't really remember."

"Preposterous! There MUST BE something that you remember." The white unicorn mare angrily replied as she grasped the dark orange mare's hoof. "Isn't there anything at all!?"

For a brief moment, the hearts and souls of the three mares resonated. It was strangely calming and everything whited out...

=Chapter 6 End=

* * *

Akira:Wait, why am I in here again?

HB DS:You're in the author's notes, you moron.

Akira:Why you- *growls and bursts into flames*

HB DS:No use trying to burn me; I'm immune here and the only ones who are aware of the fourth wall are Pinkie Pie and Nazou... who's renamed Crimson Edge.

Akira:Fine. Wait... will my memories be back together?

HB DS:Yep... and it involves a certain alicorn. And no, it's NOT Cadence. To be fair, your memories prior to Mobius were probably sealed away for the most part. And I'm doing this so no spoilers will be spilled.


	7. In Exchange for Something

**_Alt. Title:Link to the Second Gate_**

Here's some Q & A...

Q:What's with the questions?  
A:I'm not too sure.

Q:Is Cadence immortal?  
A:No.

Q:Is Cadence possibly-  
A:NO SPOILERS!

Q:In human years, how old would Shining Armor and Cadence be?  
A:Mid to late twenties.

Q:What's the side effects of being aligned with darkness?  
A:Slowed aging, almost tanned skin tone and yellow eyes at best; increased insanity, higher chances of possession and corruption, along with decreased lifespan and a slightly more serious and cynical personality at worst.

Q:What's the difference between human and equine lifespans?  
A:15 years. (1 year old pony = 16 year old human)

Q:How long have you been obsessed with MLP?  
A:Since the third week of September 2012.

* * *

_**[Akira's Memories:First Gate, three days ago...]**_

_The wind howled, the trees stirred, and as always, the moon shone on the seemingly unconscious bodies of two unicorn mares as the two woke up to the sound of footsteps... and to a familiar voice. _

_[So, this is the First Gate...] The voice muttered. _

_"Huh? W-where am I?" Rarity groaned as she rubbed her head with her hooves. The white unicorn mare stood and looked up. It turned out to be from Akira. Everything feels real, sounds real, but at the same time... is not. Her hoof went through the half-human's leg and she sighed in slight dismay. _

_[Celestia, huh? I doubt that it sounds human... and it feels a lot like I know her somehow.] Akira shook her head and sighed. [Hope everyone's okay...] _

_The half-human trudged along, her red jacket swaying slightly as she clutched her right with her left hand and breathed deeply. She wore an orange shirt, a pair of black pants and an open thick, red survival jacket that covered the entirety of her upper body while her entire face was hidden by a hood and only her golden-yellow eyes were seen. Rarity had no choice but to follow the woman to wherever it was that she was going to._

_No sound was heard, save for footsteps and silent hoofsteps... until the bushes rustled. Akira lowered herself and summoned her sword, ready to attack at any moment. But instead, the rustling came from Twilight Sparkle, and the two unicorn mares happily hugged each other and continued to follow their half-human friend._

_Later on, the half-human woman walked on until she was suddenly ambushed by a swarm of black and green; for some reason, she found herself dodging all their attacks effortlessly. _

_"Oh, come on... do something." Rarity muttered. _

_The moment one of the changelings lunged for her, Akira dodged the attack and countered with an explosive punch called Deep Impact. Her punches became progressively faster and faster with every hit. Before she knew it, many changelings had their bodies broken after two hits and by the 500th wave, the black, insectoid shapeshifters retaliated by repeatedly charging their larger and faster opponent. Unfazed by the relentless assault, the half-human woman pressed on, slowly giving in to her lust for battle (one of those side effects from being cursed for so long) and was briefly distracted by their blue eyes and was nearly smothered by the swarm when she roared; her orange aura exploded into flames and her golden eyes burned with rage for a moment, repelling the changeling swarm and summoning the darkness within the confines of her body. _

_Overwhelmed by her inner darkness, she fell on her knees and her entire body briefly pulsed and then darkened as her hair and tails became more of a darkened vermillion, then her eyes of gold burned into a blood-red color. Her jacket disapppeared, and the only thing that gleamed in the moonlight were her now blood-red eyes and her shining, golden ring inhibitors. At this point, the chain/arm weight hybrid below them disappeared and she stood, adopting a feral pose as she gave a twisted smile and leered at the changelings. Twilight Sparkle and Rarity were shocked and horrified at the transformation as they watched every moment of it. _

_"Is... is this what she was hiding!?" The purple mare gulped with fear as she felt the half-human berserker's aura change from orange to black. Twilight Sparkle was paralyzed by her fear, confirming everything that she had read while on her previous trips to the Canterlot Royal Library. Very few ponies have known or heard about the 'Three-Tailed Demon' and with REALLY good reason. "A-are you alright, Rarity?"_

_"The mare we know is completely different from the mare we see here. Has she been Discorded?" Rarity asked._

_"It looks a lot like she wasn't Discorded, but..."_

_"But what?"_

_"Nightmare Moon is easy compared to 'Kira. If we ever have to confront her like that, I wouldn't know what to do." Twilight paled as she continued to watch._

_Akira tore the swarm of changelings apart and sliced their bodies to pieces in a psychopathic manner with slight glee and continued until the 1500th wave appeared. That was when everything on worsened. First, the large swarm of changelings brutally beat her as soon as the dark half-human berserker let down her guard in the sense of literally slashing at her immediately after shapeshifting to manticores. Next, they charged at her at a speed that was almost like an intense bombardment. Finally, they tried absorbing her love, but all they could obtain from the berserker was complete hatred and stopped. _

_A tall, slender, teal-haired woman in a fanservice-inducing, formfitting charcoalish dress with dark green eyes and a pair of insectoid wings appeared in front of the half-human berserker and stared solemnly at her. The berserker stopped and turned to the strange woman and merely growled. _

_[You must be the leader, am I right?] Akira snarled at the woman._

_[My name is Queen Chrysalis of the Changelings. I have heard of you.] The woman smiled. [I have a proposition for you.]_

_[What of it?]_

_[I propose that you and I join together to take over Equestria together so to control ponykind and I can have my hands on a certain unicorn.] Human! Chrysalis answered._

_[A certain unicorn?] Akira inquired. _

_[Do you know of somepony named Shining Armor?] The teal-haired woman asked. _

_[I remember meeting him. Oh, wait... why are you asking me this?] The half-human berserker growled. _

_[Revenge against that foal Twilight Sparkle and that alicorn Mi Amore Cadenza...]_

_[So they ARE real... Wait, why are YOU here?]_

_[There is one more reason why I am here, though.]_

_[...]_

_[I have... a new lease on life-]_

_[But you did not die.] Akira growled. _

_[I have been employed by something called the Absolute Evil, and it... needs your strength. Join me and become the sword of destruction once again.] Human! Chrysalis explained. [Don't you want revenge against ponykind?]_

_[You confronted me just so you could take over an entire country and get your hooves on a stallion like Shining Armor!? I may not know him on a personal basis, but I'm not interested in taking over. Besides... I have no reason to be hostile to ponies.]_

_[How... How dare you refuse me!?] Human! Chrysalis gasped then her face contorted into an angry look as her wings buzzed. _

_[A wise queen once told my brother to fight for love and justice, and a certain pink hedgehog told me to protect those I care for.] Akira answered as she calmed down and reverted back to her normal state, then turned and walked away from the changeling queen. She crossed her arms and sighed deeply as her golden-yellow eyes looked up at the moon. [I can sense a strange parallel between you and a certain red-headed old hag...] _

_[You dare refer to me as an old hag!?] The changeling queen roared and quickly threw a powerful magic bolt at the berserker, who simply dodged it and suddenly appeared in front of her. ! _

_[Listen, you succubus! You're tempting fate by angering me. I won't even break a sweat decimating your changeling army.] __Akira gave a strong death glare as she appeared behind the changeling queen and continued. [_I've beaten humans, robots, robot hedgehogs, a mechanical evil genius, a red-headed old hag and her army of pansies and you expect me to simply team up with you and do what your master says? The only reason you're alive right now is because you're hiding behind your pathetic shapeshifting army!] 

_Chrysalis was overwhelmed by anger and waited until the half-human berserker walked away a certain distance, then she blasted her newfound enemy with several strong magic bolts until the latter fell down without a fight. Even while succumbing to her injuries, Akira stared at Chrysalis with her soul-piercing eyes of gold and slowly blacked out. The changeling queen left with an entirely disgusted look and disappeared, taking her army with her. _

_Some time has passed, and an ethereal white, fiery-maned alicorn appeared. The half-human berserker stirred somewhat and regained consciousness long enough to take a look at the ethereal alicorn._

_[What the... heck!?] Akira gasped. [Who... are you?]_

_[Don't you remember who I am, Akira?] The mysterious alicorn asked. _

_[How do you know... my name!?]_

_[We have met before, my strong-willed student.] _

_[Solar... Flare? Taiyou-sensei?] _

_[That's right.] Solar Flare nodded. ____[Do you remember that day when you and 'Celly met?] _

___[Who's 'Celly?]_

___[I see.] The ethereal alicorn shook her head. [So it HAS been a very long time.] _

___[What is this place?] The half-human berserker asked. _

___[This is one of five Temporal Memory Gates that you and Celestia have created.] The ethereal alicorn explained. [All mortal beings are forced into a human form while inside, and deep within the Gate is a key of sorts. When all five keys are found, the final one will reveal itself and open.] _

___[So, then... what happened to you?]_

___[Anything about me will be revealed once the final gate is opened, my strong-willed student. When you and 'Celly met, you promised her that you would visit her one day.] Solar Flare's ethereal body disappeared in a burst of flames._

___Twilight and Rarity were blinded by a white light and were engulfed in it... _

**___[End Flashback]_**

* * *

**___Carousel Boutique_**

When the three mares recovered, Akira groaned a bit as she rubbed her equine head with her left forehoof. A feeling of dread filled the fashionista as she backed away and gulped in fear. Twilight Sparkle gasped a bit and stared apprehensively at the Earth pony mare.

"What... was that?" Rarity whimpered.

"That... was a Memory Dive." Akira answered. "Twilight? Rarity? Are you two okay?"

"I saw things that I shouldn't have seen..." Twilight wavered.

"Are there anymore secrets you're hiding from us, 'Kira?" The white unicorn mare glared. "What are you? WHO are you? Tell us!"

"What you saw when I decimated the changeling army was a side of myself I call, 'Kagami'. We're both strong, but Kaga-chan's more psychotic and I only let her out as a last resort. You could say that destruction's my fate, and despite my name, I'm actually the only hero of darkness." The dark orange mare explained as she trotted for the door. "Darkness isn't evil, but most consider it to be. Both of you have every right to be scared of me, I completely understand."

"Wait." Rarity called out to the dark orange mare. "Then you are a hero?"

"What I would do for therapy and anger management classes..." Akira muttered. "Yeah, what's it to you?"

"How rude. You would think that I would be easily traumatized by something like that!?"

"Erm... uh, yeah. I was even expecting you to toss needles at my face or something." The dark orange mare shrugged. "Or even scream at my face for that matter. 'Cause, y'know..."

"Now, why would I do something like that. Would you like a dress for free?" The fashionista quickly changed the subject.

"No. I already have enough clothes as is. Oh, and by the way, you guys don't normally wear clothes; I do."

"I can't believe that you have darkness in YOUR heart and you're not even corrupted yet!" Twilight exclaimed.

"Actually, I've been corrupted multiple times; if it wasn't for the people I met along the way... Anyway, uhhh..." The dark orange mare's stomach growled and then left Carousel Botique as she muttered, "Wanna hang out together?"

"Any reason for doing this?" The purple unicorn mare asked.

"Well..."

* * *

_**Meanwhile, in Ponyville Park...**_

_"Argh... did you have to traumatize 'em, kid sis?" Crimson groaned as he thought of his sudden hunger. _

"What's wrong, Crimsie?" Pinkie asked.

_"Hey, are you hungry?" _

"Yeah. Ooh, I know!"

_"What?" _

"Whatever it would be, let's invite everypony- WHOA!" The pink mare was suddenly startled by the sight of Twilight, Rarity and Akira appearing in a burst of purple light. "Don't scare me like that!"

"Sorry, Pinkie." Twilight sweatdropped.

"I can't wait for it! Wait... where are Dashie and Fluttershy?"

_"Come to think of it, I haven't seen a hint of either one today. Hrm... has anyone seen either of-" Crimson wondered and gaped at teh sight of Enzo and the pegasi mares. "WHAT THE HECK IS-"_

"So that's Mobius... Oh wow, it's so much bigger." Fluttershy giggled as she gushed over. "So much trees, so much sky... There are bipedal hedgehogs, foxes, echidnas... and MORE!"

"What's Mobius like, Dashie?" Pinkie asked.

"Everything that Fluttershy said... except that there are no ponies. There are humans in there, though." The cyan pegasus answered.

"DID YOU SAY HUMANS!?" The pink mare shouted. "I thought they didn't exist anymore."

"Well, the humans I've met are none other than 'Kira's own foals. I met 'em when I crash-landed the other day, y'know."

"How are they? Are they safe and sound?" Akira asked with a concerned look.

"They're okay. Scarlet says that they've been staying with somepony called Tails." Rainbow Dash replied. "While you were gone, they were attacked by changelings, too."

"Alright, then. Enzo." The dark orange mare called her timebird friend over. "Do you have enough for a one-way trip to Mobius?"

Enzo nodded.

"You're not leaving us, are you!?" Pinkie Pie whimpered.

"You're gonna have a lot of fun with my older brother. I know Nazou... or Crimson in your case long enough that he's just been holding back. He just needs to learn how to use unicorn magic in tandem with fox magic." Akira smiled and quickly blushed out of embarrassment. "Not... that I would know or anything. Besides, I'm just an Earth pony."

"As we see you. In the Everfree Forest, you turn out to be the Legendary Three-Tailed Demon. You know about the ancient evil and is the only one who knows where they all are." Twilight answered. "From what I have gathered with our conversations, I can tell that you are a powerful half-human that is the supposed 'sword of destruction'. In addition, you and Princess Celestia have a history together... well, not in 'that' sense, but nevertheless have met at some point in the past before the founding of Equestria."

"Hmph. Not bad, Twilight Sparkle. You could make a great detective with your observation and intelligence. You're right that Princess Celestia and I have a history together, and yes, I am one of the co-creators of the TM Gates. 'Sword of Destruction' is one of my unofficial titles, but I am known mostly as the 'Three-Tailed Demon'." The dark orange mare explained. "In fact, the ancient evil was what started THIS in the first place!"

"You mean-"

_"Yep. But I wish Applejack was here so I can tell everypony the entire thing, or at least my side of the story. Something tells me that she told you the entire thing already." _

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot." Akira turned to her saddlepack and gave her brother a box-shaped item wrapped in yellow wrap and a pink ribbon. "Happy 31st birthday... Nazou."

_"Awww... you remembered. I'm so happy... and so sad that I still can't use magic." Crimson sniffled as he was given his birthday present. _

"You're getting there. Besides, you got an egghead and a military man, er, pony to teach you." The dark orange mare smirked as she gave a snide chuckle.

Twilight quickly realized who she was talking about and glared at the older mare.

"So, when is the next time you're gonna visit?" Pinkie Pie asked. "How's about a party when you come back? Huh? Huh? HUH!?"

"Pass." Akira flatly refused.

"Aww, u no liek my parties?"

"Well, hanging out with you IS already a party in itself. I can't even comprehend anything going on in your head, so I won't even bother." The dark orange mare chuckled softly.

"Careful out there, there might be dangerous monsters in Mobius." Fluttershy bashfully whimpered.

"I doubt that there would be any monsters in Mobius."

"Take care of yourself, 'Kira dear." Rarity smiled.

"I will. Hey Rainbow Dash." The berserker turned to the cyan pegasus.

"What?"

"Did you see a blue hedgehog?" The dark orange mare asked.

"Nope. It would be pretty cool if I could challenge him to a race, though." RD chuckled.

"I can outrun anyone except him and a certain black hedgehog. Maybe I SHOULD challenge you sometime... when my injuries are gone."

"Sure. I'm always ready for a challenge."

Akira nodded at the five mares... and single stallion, then tossed a shard of something that turned into a light orange orb. It circled Twilight twice and went into her body, briefly engulfing her in a magenta aura and nearly ovewhelming the purple unicorn mare in a manner highly reminescent of hatching Spike's egg. When she regained her senses, she watched the dark orange mare transform into a half-human and disappear with Enzo in a burst of flames.

"W-what just happened?" Twilight murmured to herself as she rubbed her face with her left hoof.

_"You're fine. Something tells me that whatever it was you absorbed has to do with the second TM Gate. That, and Akira's usually a jerk. She's only nice when she needs to be." Crimson answered as he nodded at the younger mare and stared dreamily at his birthday present. _

"How do you know this?" The purple mare wondered.

_"I know this because that's her usual act... and is one of the permanent side effects of her curse. The rest being a slightly darker skin tone, more anger issues and golden yellow eyes. She used to have blue eyes, though." The older Hayashi answered. "Now, if you'll excuse me..." _

The moment Crimson Edge opened his present, his ears perked up and eyes turned into stars as he slowly did away with the yellow wrap and pink ribbon to reveal... a wooden box.

_"Best. Gift. Ever." The unicorn stallion cried tears of joy as he opened the wooden box. _

"Today was your birthday? Well, why didn't you say so!?" Pinkie asked.

_"To be fair, even I didn't know. What I DO know is that at least Akira gave me something." CE turned to the pink mare. _

"Is that tofu!?"

_"Yes. Wait, how do you know?"_

"I should have known you're one of those mystical foxes." Pinkie shook her head. "Wait, are you sure you're not posessed?"

_"What!? No. It's real." CE retorted. "And yes, I'm also a shapeshifter."_

"Kitsune are changelings?"

_"I doubt that. Changelings are more like bees and something else. I'm just lucky they didn't drain my energy." _

"So YOU'RE a demon fox!?" Rainbow Dash exclaimed. "If we see you as a pony, but... Argh, make up your mind!"

_"I'm technically half-human. But... I'm stuck in this form until then. Even if I learn basic unicorn magic, something's keeping me here." _

"It sounds a lot like you don't like being a pony."

_"I don't have any problems against being a pony, but the only reason I used an advanced transformation spell on myself was that so that nopony would freak out over my real appearance." CE hung his head as he sighed deeply. "That, and it would be weird for me to even try going through the door without bumping." _

"Did you say... advanced transformation spell?" Twilight asked.

_"Well, yeah! I kinda remember summoning six black orbs, then being engulfed in a crimson light. Next thing I knew, time stopped and the rest's history." The unicorn stallion answered. _

"There isn't anything like that in any of the advanced magic tomes back in Canterlot. Are you sure that was on purpose?"

_"I meant it to be temporary! And it was a flu-" _

Before CE could finish his sentence, Ponyville was suddenly hit by a strange anomaly, negating ALL the gravity and magic in the area, causing chaos in the form of floating houses and buildings, crushed stalls and everypony else were on the ground, save for the Mane 5 (Applejack's near Sweet Apple Acres) and Crimson, who were floating mid-air.

_"Waaargh! Is this supposed to be normal!?" CE growled._

"I don't think so." Rainbow Dash replied. "What's going on here!?"

"Meep." Fluttershy whimpered as she tried to move with her hooves, nothing's happening. "I can't fly in this sort of thing!"

"The gravity around Ponyville's been altered, tearing everything off the ground and pulling the objects closer to the center. " Twilight explained. "On a side note, some of the stalls have been crushed by the overwhelming gravity due to their-"

"Sooo does this mean we get to fly?" Pinkie asked. "I wanna fly too!"

"I'm not too sure." The purple unicorn hesitated as she sweatdropped.

"I demand that you let me down this instant!" Rarity screamed as she tried to trot normally, but fails and ends up floating in mid-air.

"Is it me, or am I seeing a blue bar above Crimsie's head?" Pinkie turned to the unicorn stallion as she literally notices a floating blue bar above his head. "I think we're following video game physics, and that's a bit hard for me. I usually do cartoon physics."

"What are you talking about, Pinkie? I don't see a blue bar. "Twilight gave a confused look. "And what do you mean by video game physics?"

"I'm not... too sure. In fact, I can see it above everypony else." The bubbly mare shrugged as she calmly replied.

"I don't believe- What the hay is going on here!?" Rainbow Dash gasped at Pinkie's bar and saw the same bar above her friend's head.

"Oooooh, oooh! Let's pretend that we're all stuck in something called a VRMMORPG, and we're actually sleeping or something."*

_"VR-what now?" Crimson Edge asked. _

"Y'know, a Virtual Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game." Pinkie chuckled.

_"I'm lost." The unicorn stallion shook his head. "But this place DOES NOT have those weird boxes."_

"Mean a computer?"

_"I'm even more lost. Can we stop talking about technology already!?" Crimson groaned and facehoofed. _

The feeling of weightlessness frustrated the stallion, who growled as he floated helplessly with a flat face, and a voice chuckled in response as it smirked. "It was bad enough that you looked like a girl. Now you DO look like one!"

_"Hmph, cake hater." Crimson flatly insulted the voice. _

"Fine, then. Looks like I'll have to see you for myself." The voice came from a dark grey-coated pegasus stallion with a black mane and turquoise eyes. "It has been at least five thousand years since the last time we crossed paths."

_"Warren!? How the heck did you-" _

"Ah, but you forget. The both of us are rivals to the bitter end. I didn't mind that you ended up becoming an honorary Knight in the service of the Future Silver Millennium, but at the same time peeved at your thick skull." Farran growled. "You're not the only one with an alias. And my name's Farran!"

_"Okay... but why are YOU here!?"_

"To get in your way. I can't believe you're resorting to getting help from five girls-"

"Mares." Twilight corrected.

"Whatever. What is this place, a sugar bowl filled with pastel-colored pansies!?"

_"Yes." Crimson flatly replied. _

"And they're ruled by a pair of namby-pamby sisters?" The pegasus stallion continued.

_"Namby-pamby? You're really subtle." The red unicorn stallion deadpanned. "I wouldn't do that if I were you..." _

"Why should I care?"

_"I find it strangely ironic that you're a pegasus insulting other ponies. Are you sure you're not a griffin or a dragon?" Crimson smirked. "And if you told them straight to their faces, something might happen. _

"For reasons of security, my name is Changed Daily... Huh? I don't remember having this on me. Anyway, today, you may call me..." The pegasus continued as he held a red device as it beeped and groaned. "Where the heck did I get this embarrassing random name generator!?"

_"Oh man, after insulting ponies, yours is a fate worse than death, Dallin." __The unicorn stallion snickered._

"It's Farran." The pegasus stallion growled between clenched teeth.

The mares cracked up at Crimson's comment, breaking a hold on the Ponyville-sized zero gravity field, forcing everypony to fall down... while Twilight Sparkle and Crimson Edge were engulfed in a black void and disappeared; Dal, erm, Farran left the same way.

"Oww, that hurt." Pinkie Pie groaned.

"The nerve..." Rarity cringed as she brushed off the dust off her coat and hooves.

"Is everypony alright?" Fluttershy asked.

"I think I'm okay." Rainbow Dash groaned. "Hey, where's Applejack?"

In response, to that, the Stetson-toting apple farmer appeared with lasso in hoof. "Right here, sugahcube. Took me long enough, no thanks to me floating all over." She chuckled and inquired with a serious tone. "Now, where's Twi and Crimson?"

"Over there... I think?" Pinkie answered as her pink hoof pointed towards where their bodies should be.

"Ah don't see 'em. D' ya think they're-" The orange mare stared at where the two unicorns were and shook her head with a worried look. "Ah hope they're okay."

* * *

_**Meanwhile...**_

"Are you alright?" Twilight asked.

_"Owww. Mmmm Fhhhhh..." Crimson groaned with muffled sounds._

"What was that?" The purple unicorn mare lowered her head closer to the stallion's head and her ears twitched a bit, then rolled her eyes and pulled him out with her magic.

_"I meant my face! Blargh." The red unicorn stallion spat out some dirt and shook his head. "You better NOT stomp on my head. I'm not headstrong like my kid sis." _

"Oops?" Twilight Sparkle feigned ignorance for a moment and turned to the stallion and asked, "Who the hay's Chibiusa?"

_"...And that's how I befriended her. I mean, I just told you the simplified version." Crimson answered. "She... was a good friend of mine that I met a very long time ago; I also had the honor of meeting a certain moon rabbit. That, and I remember telling you and Rarity about this kind of thing earlier. _

"Huh... it looks like we've been transported somehere else." The purple unicorn mare replied as she lit up the void with the aura from her horn. "Who was that pegasus, and why did he attack us?"

_"His real name's Farran. How he obtained a name generator like that is a complete mystery to me. Anyway, I'm not sure what his motives are, save to get in my way." _

"What's his problem?"

_"__I only hope he's getting in my way out of spite and not something else." Crimson answered with a slightly worried look. _

Time passed, and the two eventually found a light. The two galloped towards it, and the first thing they heard was a certain alicorn caressing a calculating device in a strange and intimate manner. Twilight and Crimson Edge stared uncomfortably as Luna told stories to her abacus almost as if the abacus was her foal, then stopped and glared at the two unicorns.

"Eek!" Luna squealed. "I mean... **WHO ART THOU!?"**

_"This isn't what it looks like?" The unicorn stallion chuckled nervously. _

"Uhhh... I don't like where this is going." Twilight gulped and backed away.

_"I agree with you, too." Crimson nodded._

"**PREPARE THYSELF, FOOLISH KNAVES!**" Luna thundered in the Royal Canterlot Voice and prepared her hind hooves.

_"Uhhh..." The unicorn stallion sweatdropped as he quickly assumed a defensive stance. His eyes shrank and found himself immobilized in fear, preparing himself for the worst._

The next thing that happened can only be described as a massive hole in the wall was made and all of Canterlot shook violently for a brief moment as a pair of unicorns were flung into the air by the cobalt alicorn's powerful kick.

**_Elsewhere in Canterlot..._**

Celestia was doing paperwork when the castle shook violently for a moment, slightly surprising the white alicorn. The ground wobbled and the royal pegasus guards lost their balance and fell; she flew into the air and looked down for a moment.

"Everypony alright?" The white alicorn asked as she descended.

"Yes, Your Highness." The first guard nodded as he stood back on his hooves. "What was that?"

"Do you know anything about this, Your Highness?" The second guard asked as he turned to the alicorn.

"Yes. We just experienced an earthquake. But no need to worry, this sort of thing ususally does not happen." Celestia answered.

There was a brief silence that pervaded the halls of the throne room... until the sound of somepony screaming pierced the air and a twinkle was seen in the sky.

_**Meanwhile, somewhere else in Equestria...**_

The last thing that Twilight Sparkle saw was the sight of Princess Luna caressing an abacus and unfortunately obtained a powerful buck that would be really lethal for a normal pony. Well, one thing's for sure, she's not a normal pony. Unfortunately, she's knocked out and Crimson Edge woke up to the howling wind and stared at the unconscious mare.

Two minutes passed, and he couldn't remember who she was. But on the other hoof, at least he knows that he can survive an alicorn's kick. And that the spell he cast on himself the first day was starting to weaken. It wouldn't be long until everypony (with the exception of Shining Armor and Cadence, who were the first to know) would realize Crimson Edge isn't a pony, but a half-human hybrid. But it's not like a dark secret, right? He had the chance to tell Rarity and Fluttershy who he really is, but missed the chance.

_"I know that you're knocked out right now, but hear me out, 'kay?" Crimson began. "With the exceptions of Shining Armor, Cadence and Rainbow Dash, I haven't been honest with anyone else. The truth is... that I'm not a pony, I'm half-human. From the distant past. In short, I should be an old man, but I'm not. I don't look a day over twenty-four physically... or was it thirty one? But I've seen many things in my long life as a half-human hybrid. Despite being mortal, I can live a bit over a thousand years. But I sound a lot like I'm four hundred. I don't get how I can recognize everyone else, but you. For the record, I DON'T have any feelings for you. It's really awkward how I'm telling you the last part, but I promise to be more honest about myself." _

As he rambled on, he gradually changed from his equine form to a humanoid shape. Hooves turned into hands and bare feet; his crimson coat turned into a crimson kosode and a deep red hakama; His single mahogany tail divided into four white-tipped brush-shaped ones and his face became more human-like (namely, slightly flat.) On the right side of his cheek were two red fang-marks and his head gained a pair of vulpine ears. (His skin tone is slightly lighter than his younger sister's though.) However, his blue eyes and mahogany hair stayed the same. Instead of standing in his equine form, he found himself sitting down with crossed legs; his hands resting on his knees, staring into the sky.

When Twilight woke up, she found herself looking up at a strange bipedal creature calmly sitting down beside her. His aura was strangely familiar, and his mane and eyes stayed the same.

"Crimson Edge? Is.. that you?" The purple mare wondered.

_"You heard everything, didn't you?" The half-human turned to the mare and frowned, but didn't chuckle._

"I heard everything, Crimson. Especially the first part." Twilight answered. "So, this is your true form?"

_"Are you afraid of me?" _

"A little bit. I was completely surprised when I saw 'Kira as a human in the Everfree Forest. And I didn't expect you to be one either."

_"I don't think we've met, Strobe Light." _

"It's Twilight." The purple mare cleared her throat.

_"Midnight Twinkle?"_

"No... Twilight."

_"Dusk Shine?"_

"No- What am I, a stallion!?" Twilight retorted.

_"Something tells me we've met before." The half-human replied. _

"We have. Five days ago. In Ponyville. Earlier, Princess Luna bucked you so hard that you forgot who I am. I'm just relieved that we're both alright." The purple mare smiled.

_"I agree, Globe Light." _

"It's Twilight! It's NOT that hard to remember."

_"Fine, then... Morning Glory. Where the heck are we?" _

The two looked around, and noticed the abundance of pine trees in the distance. It was noted that the two are on a hill on the edge of a massive forest, and it was already night-

* * *

_**Fourth Wall Moment with Crimson Edge/Nazou**_

_"Is it me, or do you have a horrible sense of direction?" The half-human asked. _

So much for driving, I guess.

_"Wait, why am I with Dusk-"_

It's TWILIGHT! It's NOT that hard to remember, Crimson Edge! Seriously!?

_"Not my fault a certain alicorn bucked me so hard. You're the one writing the plot, remember!?" _

Oh, right. What's your favorite alias, Nazou? Or Crimson Edge?

_"Nazou's my personal favorite." The half-human grinned. "Hey HB?" _

Yah?

_"Why do you like ponies all of a sudden?" _

I don't even know why I started liking ponies. But what I do know is that it started during the summer, and I started watching videos out of irony. It's not like I hated ponies or anything, it's just that... boredom forces me to do like different things.

_"I see. Thanks so much, HB._"

No problem... Oh, wait. Break's over.

* * *

"Are you talking to the sky, Crimson?" Twilight asked.

_Nazou gave a questioning look as he frowned at his friend's question. _

"Nevermind. Let's see what you can do." The purple mare looked up with a serious look.

_The half-human nodded and transformed back into a unicorn stallion with "relative ease", surprising himself, seeing as he spent five days AS one. It shouldn't be too hard this time around. _

"Not bad for a transformation spell." Twilight smirked as she pointed to a nearby boulder with her left hoof. "Now, try lifting that with your magic."

_Now a stallion again, Nazou/Crimson Edge entered a feral stance and closed his eyes. His horn started to glow a crimson aura as he concentrated his energy on a small boulder. He imagined himself levitating the boulder, but when he opened his eyes, he found himself levitating Twilight instead. _

"Lift the rock, not me!" The purple mare quipped and yelped as she fell down with a thud. "Waaaargh!"

_"Dusk Shine, are you okay!?" Crimson Edge cantered over to the purple mare. _

"It's Twilight Sparkle." She gave a visible sigh as she facehoofed. "This is going to take a while..."

_**Six hours of practice later...**_

_"Learning unicorn magic is harder than I imagined." The unicorn stallion gave a sigh of dismay as he sat down, almost exhausted. "How does it work, anyway?" _

"Using magic isn't simply lifting people and rocks spells, it comes from within." Twilight explained. "Magic... is simply an extension of your mind."

_"Do you have to be a genius to be a powerful user of magic?" _

"No. Normal unicorns can still be magic users in their own right; I'm just a prodigy, that's all." The purple mare answered.

_"Huh... So every unicorn can specialize in different kinds?" _

"That's right. Shining Armor deals with defensive magic, Cadence focuses on love, Rarity has her gem-finding spell while Princesses Celestia and Luna control the sun and the moon, respectively." Twilight continued, "For me, I just have a lot of raw magic."

_"I see..." _

"Come on, we have to get back to work."

_"Okay." _

_Crimson Edge faced the boulder once again and let out a visible sigh. He closed his eyes as a crimson aura emanated from the horn. It burned with mental energy and the boulder was engulfed in the aura. The stallion assumed a battle pose as he strained himself, focusing his energy on the task at hoof. Twilight watched as the boulder slowly, but was visibly levitated into the air. His effort in moving the boulder with magic was a complete success as it stayed up for at least fifteen seconds. _

"You can open your eyes now." The purple smiled at the older stallion.

When the unicorn stallion opened his eyes, the boulder was on the air, levitated by his aura. He was surprised that he finally managed to learn unicorn magic, even if it was one aspect. CE gave a wide grin and looked up in wonder then happily tossed aside the boulder behind... and it shattered into smithereens upon contact with an invisible wall.

The purple mare trotted closer to the invisible wall, then tried knocking; it didn't move. CE frowned as he stared at it, while Twilight looked around for any hints or ideas of how to get across it. Crimson Edge transformed back into his human form and crossed his arms for a moment, then swung his right arm and jumped into the air, summoning a thin-bladed sword and screamed angrily as he thrusted his blade into a wall and held it with a tight grip. When he was finally at the bottom of the invisible wall, he returned the blade to hammerspace and transformed back into his equine form. As the wall opened up like a door, a bright light shone through, welcoming the two unicorns and whiting out...

* * *

**_[Celestia's Memories, 2nd Encounter, THIRD Person Omniscient View]_**

_Everything in the magical world of ponies before Discord was largely the same, while things in the human world worsened. It was a ruin of what it once was: there were even fewer humans than before, most of the flora and fauna were gone and the sky had a bloody-red tint to it. At this time, Princess Celestia wasn't even a princess yet. Still a young filly, she looked up at her mother, Solar Flare, a white alicorn mare with a fiery mane and a strong heart._

_"Stay close to me, 'Celly. The world on the other side is different from what we are used to." Solar Flare looked down at her daughter with a firm look._

_"Really? Is it kinda like home?" The white alicorn asked._

_"I'm not too sure." SF replied as she gave a confused look. "It has been at least ten years from a human point of view." _

_The two entered the barrier and what was supposed to be a pristine sun-filled forest turned out to be barren. What was once blue turned red, and it resembled something from an apocalypse, save for the fact that there were little to no ruins of what was once buildings. A foreboding aura filled the skies with fear and despair as the alicorns trotted along, for any signs of life... if any. No one wants to be in a future where virtually everything is destroyed, where there is no life, no hope... nothing. There wasn't much... until the two encountered an unconscious human body. She looked familiar in a strange sense, though._

_[What... happened here, Mother?] Celestia asked with a scared look. _

_[I have never seen a place so corrupted by fear and despair in my many years that I have existed." Solar Flare stared solemnly at the human figure."Now look upon what evil itself hath wrought on this dying world. This is a future that should have never been." _

_[You mean that everything's... gone?]_

_[I am afraid so, 'Celly. The sun's warmth has gone, the moon no longer shines its healing light, and the stars... there is nothing left in the heavens for anything.] The older alicorn replied, then recoiled upon gazing on the numerous injuries the human figure had and trotted back for a moment. [__That brown and red mane... those vulpine ears and tails, it has to be...]_

_The young mare trotted closer to the figure and flinched at the sight; it was none other than her foalsitter, Akira. Her clothes were battered enough to the point where her clothes have multiple cuts and scratches, revealing bandages underneath; it looked a lot like she was badly beaten and that her brown and red mane and tails were disheveled. Despite being in her late teens, her physical appearance was apparently 15-16. _

_[Is... she alright?] Celestia asked. _

_[Her soul is damaged. Even though she is injured, Akira has nowhere else to go... seeing as everything here is destroyed.] Solar Flare replied as she levitated the half-human woman and gently dropped her on her barrel... back...* Yah, the back. Anyway...  
AN:I'm NO good with equine anatomy here._

_The two alicorns returned to the other side of the barrier with unconscious half-human on board; Celestia looked back at the barrier and turned to her with a sad look..._

_~One Week Later~_

_Under the calm skies of the pony world, the unconscious form that is Akira stirred to the sound of rustling trees and the crunching of grass. Her brown and red hair blew in the wind as her tail curled up against her human body; one of her vulpine ears twitched as a cute voice rang in her head. _

_[Argh... I wonder who that could be?] The half-human wondered as she stirred. _

_[Wake up already!] The voice shouted. _

_[For crying out loud, I'm-] Akira woke up to the sight of a white-coated pink-maned alicorn filly with a groggy look and an annoyed tone. [Who are you and where am I?]_

_[It's me, Celestia. Umm, Mother and I took you in away from that horrible place and took the liberty of healing your injuries.] The alicorn filly answered in a matter-of-factly tone. [Oh, and you're back here in the other side of the barrier.]_

_[You mean that you saw the other side of the barrier?]_

_Celestia nodded and turned away in sadness. [So, that's your home? What... happened?]_

_[I only remember it being a slightly better place back when I was a kid. At least there were trees. But now, everything's gone... because of what I did.] _

_[What you did?]_

_[It's nothing.] The half-human woman shook her head. [I'm pretty sure Solar Flare's worried sick about you.] _

_The alicorn filly agreed and was about to start trotting away when the fiery-maned mare appeared in a burst of illusionary flames. _

_[Yes, I would be. Even more so about you, Akira.] Solar Flare sternly replied. _

_[What do you mean by that?] Akira inquired with a confused look._

_[This Earth is dying and has been corrupted by the ancient evil. He seeks the complete destruction of our world.] The fiery-maned alicorn explained. [It is unfortunate that someone such as yourself possesses a fraction of his power.] _

_[So, you know about what I did.] _

_[An idea. Even though you physically did it, it wasn't of your free will.] _

_[Free... will?]_

**_[Flashback End]_**

* * *

The two unicorns were forcibly transformed into humans as soon as they stepped foot onto an endless field of grass. This time around, instead of his usual Feudal-Era attire, they change to a dark grey uniform with a white trim, a pair of grey pants, along with a pair of dark grey boots with a white trim and a black cape with a white crescent on it. (Twilight still has her preppy uniform, but her skirt's slightly longer and has somehow extended to barely above the knees.)

In addition, the door revealed a dense jungle with little to no sun. It was already enough that the younger Sparkle had problems with the Everfree being one of the few bastions of natural movement, meaning that the sun and moon move on their own, animals are independent and all that stuff.

Twilight Sparkle and Crimson Edge/Nazou traversed the trees, occasionally swatting aside some leaves blocking their view. Until they encountered a light-blue haired girl clad in a magician's hat and cape along with azure arcane robes. (Her cutie mark's located on the left side of her shoulder.) The two ran closer to her and the preppy librarian sighed then gave a deadpan look that basically expressed her dismay.

_"Something tells me you know her, Dusk Shine." _

"Argh, it's Twilight!" Twilight facepalmed then answered." And yes, I do know her. Her name is Trixie Lulamoon... or in her case, the Great and Powerful Trixie. She tends to speak in third person on a regular basis."

"Trixie demands to know what is going on here!" The new girl growled at the two as she stirred to the sound of her name.

"See? I told you so."

_**Meanwhile, with Akira in Mobius...**_

Akira found herself watching over her older children play as she stared lovingly at Izumi, her baby daughter. It was one of those rarities in which she was actually nice and caring, as she contemplated everything that had happened to her so far: she managed to endure many things that most normal people... or ponies would never be able to, especially stay alive long enough for her brother to come with help. When she blacked out and woke up at the hospital, she was strangely grateful having someponies come in and visit. Ever since she heard a story about a certain moon rabbit from Nazou, she wondered if everything here was related somehow, including her life so far.

Her reprieve broke when a humanized pegasus mare named Rainbow Dash crash-landed near the edge of the forest, then had a rather strange dream about meeting the Sparkle family and encountering the true form of the one who had uprooted so many lives out of hatred. Then her thoughts were interrupted by a foreboding sensation in the air; first thing to do was to teleport to her children and put up a protective arm over the twins.

The sky darkened, and a black mist rolled in and morphed into an army of charcoal-black creatures with blue eyes. Remembering her last encounter with them, she stared at Scarlet and gave Izumi over to her and turned to the changelings with a hateful look.

"Mom, what... are they?" The Mobian vixen asked with an apprehensive look as she held her sister.

"Changelings." Akira sternly answered. "I want the three of you to get away from me."

"Why, mom?" Kuro asked with a sad look.

"I have a strange feeling that they want to hurt you."

"Where will we go?"

"All I know is that there are good ponies over in Equestria." The half-human smiled at her sons.

"Ponies?" Shiro asked.

"Ponies."

"What about you, mom?" Scarlet protested as she was holding back tears. "Not you, too!"

"Go while you still can! Just take the twins and Izumi and go already!" Akira growled at her older daughter.

Scarlet nodded as she left with her younger siblings, her tears of sorrow already illuminating the darkened skies. While this was happening, Chrysalis appeared amongst the changeling army, her envious eyes clashing with Akira's golden eyes and chuckled to herself.

"I never imagined you would have love for your family... Fufufufu..." The changeling queen smirked. "Even memories of your loved ones will have to suffice."

"What do you want, Faker?" Akira growled and leered as she entered a fighting stance.

"How dare you refer to me as a fake!?" Chrysalis angrily bellowed.

"That's what you are, right?" The half-human woman smirked. "Even in my current state, I can still take on your army. In fact, I hate you with a burning passion."

"I share your sentiment. But, my offer still stands." The changeling queen calmly replied.

"I would rather die than help you uproot more lives!" Akira roared.

Both the changeling queen and the half-human berserker's dark auras clashed with each other, green flames and orange flames burning eternally in their eyes. As the Mobian vixen escaped, she briefly glanced at her mother and saw her golden eyes pulse to red for a moment and disappeared into the portal...

_**With Twilight Sparkle, Trixie Lulamoon and Nazou**_

_"And that is everything so far." Nazou sighed. "I suppose you must be Presto, right?" _

"The name is Trixie. Trixie Lulamoon." The magician growled. "Not Presto. Trixie."

"Finally, something that the both of us can agree on." Twilight sighed.

"Trixie wants to know why the strange stallion refers to us in a strange manner."

"Crimson Edge was bucked full force and lost some of his memories. In a sense, I am Dusk Shine, and you are Presto." The preppy librarian chuckled. "In an alternate genderbent dimension of our world. So, how's your human form?"

"Is that what this is? Trixie thought it was permanent!" Trixie gasped.

"Not while we're here. How DID you end up inside the Temporal Gate?"

"Trixie remembers meeting up with a griffon called Gilda in griffin country. The both of us are hanging out in Stalliongrad when strange anomaly transported us to opposing sides of Equestria. Trixie became trapped in this after falling near Vanhoover." The magician answered.

Time passed as the trio pressed on through the jungle. It was quiet... too quiet. Until a pair of blue eyes appeared from nowhere and gleamed among the leaves. Twilight and Nazou stopped walking and sensed more than one in this area, bewildering Trixie, who was still trying to familiarize herself with her temporary human form. The male half-human shifted his gaze and leered at the pair of blue eyes.

_"Looks like changelings are here, too." Nazou growled. "We're gonna have a party." _

"Define party in your sense." Twilight flatly replied.

_"Dusk Shine, Presto, it means we're fighting our way through." The half-human hybrid answered._

=Chapter 7 End=

* * *

Finally, they're done! I have a strange feeling that Nightmare Moon and Kagami (Luna and Akira's dark sides) are gonna have a surprise appearance later on along with Gilda. Anyway, nicknames so far (including minor characters, plot points and villains):

Scarlet Prower-Hayashi:Misaki

Daisuke "Nazou" Hayashi:Crimson Edge, Crimsie

Rainbow Dash:RD, Dashie

Shining Armor:Shiny, SA

Mi Amore Cadenza "Cadence" Sparkle*:Candace, Candy

Twilight Sparkle:'Twi, Twily, Dusk Shine

Celestia:'Celly, 'Tia, Trollestia, "namby-pamby"

Luna:Lulu

Fluttershy:Chibiusa

Ditzy Doo:Derpy Hooves

Applejack:AJ

Chrysalis:Crystal, Faker, Crystal Faker

Akira "Kazuko"^ Hayashi:'Kira

*Note:It would make sense that Cadence is married to Shining Armor, right? Plus, Cadence Sparkle has a nice "ring" to it. *snicker*

^Note:This was a nickname given by her deceased older sister... refer to one of my other fanfics, "Full Synchro". And it will be mentioned in a future chapter.

Misc:The character named Farran Quiglet makes a return. His comment is a reference to what Garble said in "Dragon Quest". There is no way I'm going to consider Cadence having a human reincarnation. Ever. Or reveal her to be related to my OCs. Although, that might be a good one-shot or something. If you really think about it, Fluttershy is more like Hotaru Tomoe in terms of personality, but has a slight resemblance to Chibiusa.

One of the previous chapter had Pinkie Pie in a Sailor fuku and literally blasting Nazou with an attack called "Moon Gorgeous Meditation". And recently, she summoned Tails Doll. Her reality-bending powers are gonna match a certain draconequus' penchant for chaos. Come to think of it, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie made me think of something. I has an idea, but I'll save that for later. And I'm trying to have everypony act in character AS much as possible. Especially Applejack, Rarity and Luna.

I also have plans for Akira because she has something that the bad guys want. This IS the third time that it happened to her, and all of them ARE really painful.


	8. This Doesn't Make Sense!

**_Alt. Title:At Least 10,000 are in here_**

* * *

Meanwhile, in Ponyville...

"How long have you known this, sugahcube?" Applejack asked.

"Since I crash landed in Mobius six days ago." Rainbow Dash answered. "In fact, I was the first to know about Crimson's real name and him being half-human. I had no idea that the Double Rainboom was remotely powerful enough to even reach lightspeed levels."

"And it all started with yah doin' a Double Rainboom? Come tah think of it, 'Rares an' ah are the last ones to know about it." The Stetson-toting mare replied.

"What IS his true form like, Dashie?" Pinkie inquired.

"For the most part, no matter what he looks like, he's always gonna have a set of blue eyes and a mahogany mane. Crimson's usually wearing these robes and something that resembles a skirt, but covers everything but his feet, I think they're called." The cyan pegasus explained. "I also saw that he stood on his hind legs similar to what you would occasionally do and have four tails."

"So, they are true..." Fluttershy muttered.

"What is?"

"Their tails signify their age and power. One tail would mean that a kitsune would be the equivalent to a foal, two to three tails are equal to that of a young pony... in terms of physical appearance, while anything beyond that would essentially be adult ponies. There's also the fact that their tails are imbued with psychic power and those who touch it are cursed. When they reach nine tails, they obtain a white, golden or silver coat. Their psychic power is increased to the point where time-space magic and omniscience are possible." The butter yellow mare cleared her throat and calmly answered.

"Fluttershy, how do you know all this?" Rainbow Dash asked with a raised eyebrow and a confused look. "You act as if you have met one before."

"Well... umm... not directly. All knowledge of kitsune has been passed down from a long time ago in my family. Then there's also the fact that my mother and I are the only pegasi in a long line of Earth ponies."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, back up. So you're saying that you come from a long line of Earth ponies!?" Pinkie exclaimed.

"Uh-huh." The butter yellow mare nodded.

"And that your family knew about this for a while!?" The bubbly mare gasped. "It. Makes. So. Much. Sense!"

"What does?" Fluttershy tilted her head in confusion.

"You're the only pegasus who basically has an affinity towards nature." Pinkie beamed. "If it wasn't for the wings, you would essentially be an Earth pony."

"なるほど." [I see.] Fluttershy sighed as she shuffled her hooves. "ああ、ごめんなさい。ためにを語っていないこの遅かれ。" [Oh, I'm sorry. For not telling this sooner.]

"Fluttershy, I can't understand anything you said. Argh, if only we had somepony else who knows." Rainbow Dash groaned.

"I believe it is called Neighponese, Rainbow, dear." Rarity answered. "According to 'Kira and Crimson, it is referred to as Japanese in the human dialect."

"Oh. Y'know, ah realized sumthin'." Applejack chuckled.

"What is it, Applejack?" Fluttershy inquired.

"Ever since we met 'Twi here, a lotta things have changed. Especially the fact that we're almost like sisters to her at this point. Ah consider 'Twi here tah be family almost as much as Applebloom an' Big Mac. Don't 'cha think so, too?" The orange mare reasoned.

The other mares nodded in agreement, and the peace was promptly broken by Pinkie puffing up like a balloon and suddenly bouncing rapidly and morphing into several shapes then jumping into the air and transforming into a pink tornado.

"I. Don't. Like. Where. This. Is. Going." Pinkie panicked as she bounced around and whirled about, her 'Pinkie Sense' going crazy.

"What!?" Everypony except Fluttershy exclaimed.

As soon as the pink mare slowed down, she took a couple of deep breaths and panicked again. Applejack took the chance to calm her down by gazing intently at the bubbly mare's eyes and slowly asked, "Can you tell us what it means?"

"Well... it means something bad already happened." Pinkie gulped in fear and paled at the thought. "And it wasn't even near us either. That, and it felt like two ocean waves clashing against each other."

"But we haven't been to the sea yet!" Rainbow Dash retorted.

"I know. Anyway, on an unrelating note, whatever it was that I did, the name of the weird staff that I had before, I think it's called the Kaleidomoon Scope." The pink mare grinned then laughed loudly. "Heh, heh, this one's actually a copy. It would be bad if I took the real thing."

Everypony chuckled nervously and went their separate ways.

* * *

At the same time, elsewhere in this world are a golden yellow coated, redheaded pegasus mare tightly holding on to a dark grey coated, brown-maned unicorn foal in her equine arms as she sat down and looked at the moon from the mouth of a cave.

"So, this is what I look like as a pegasus pony..." The voice thought. "The last thing I remember seeing before leaving Mom on her own was a strange, teal-haired and green-eyed woman clad in black backed up with a large group of black insect-like equines. I thought of flying back to Tails' Lab with everyone, but I forgot that the F-34 Hurricane was out of fuel. And it would expend most of my energy just blasting through the black and blue swarm while protecting Izumi and the guys."

The foal stirred and finally whimpered; only the night sky gave some reprieve for the two as the pegasus mare gave a weary look and a weak smile at her younger sister. For a brief moment, a white streak pierced the Equestrian night sky, prompting the golden yellow mare to look up and sigh. All she could think of before yawning and drifting off to sleep was the thought that everyone was safe.

When she woke up, the unicorn foal wasn't on her arms anymore; instead, the first thing she saw were a pair of eagle talons holding on to the foal. As she looked up, it extended to something brown and then to an avian head. The pegasus mare could only assume that this one must be one of those griffons and that she's on a cloud. Yeesh, what's up with that?

"Ich würde vermuten, dass sie deine Tochter ist." [I would have to guess that she's your daughter.] The griffon muttered.

"Umm... Sie ist nicht... meine Tochter, dass meine... jüngere Schwester." [She's not my... daughter, she's my... younger sister...] The pegasus mare hestitantly replied in German then flapped her wings and jumped into the air.

"You can understand me?" The griffon asked. By the sound, she assumed it was female.

"To a certain extent. My German is... mediocre at best. And it's not my mother tongue."

"What is?"

"Uhhh... I'm fluent in Neighponese and Poniese. What's your name?"

"Gilda. Yours?"

"Mine's Misaki."

"Neighponese?" Gilda frowned.

"But you can call me Scarlet." The golden yellow pegasus chuckled. "And that's Izumi, my younger sister."

"I'm sensing a pattern here, Scarlet. Why are you here of all places!?"

"My mother stayed behind so that me and my younger siblings would escape from the changeling army."

"Those things? I heard most changelings keep to their own group, but there's one that wants to rule over Equestria."

"Who would that be, Gilda-san?" Scarlet asked.

"Ahem! Anyway, it was a couple of months ago that someone named Chrysalis nearly crashed a wedding in an effort to take over Canterlot." Gilda explained as she held the unicorn foal in her arms. "If it wasn't for Dash an her friends, it would have escalated into something worse."

"Do you know Rainbow Dash?" The golden yellow pegasus inquired.

"Pfft, yeah. But we're not friends anymore..." The griffon's words trailed off and she sighed deeply. "Looking back at what I did, I was such a jerk to her pony friends. Then again, I have issues. I didn't want anyone else to be friends with Dash."

"Are you sure about that?"

"Well, we don't even hang out anymore. And Dash probably hates me for what I did." Gilda sighed as she gave Izumi back to the pegasus. "What about you, Scarlet?"

"Me? It's not easy having work and home so far away. So I can't always spend time with my friends. Or Miles, for that matter."

"Is Miles your coltfriend?"

"NO! Miles is my older brother. He's a mechanic." The pegasus mare shook her head and facehoofed at the griffon.

"A mecha-whatnow?"

"He works on machines. You know, powered tools and such."

"I'm pretty sure everything in Equestria's magic powered." Gilda scratched her head in confusion. "Are you sure you're not crazy?"

"I would have to be."

"I don't think Neighpon's big on technology. We. Work. With. Magic. Not technology. Magic."

"What's magic?"

"Have you been living in a rock, Scarlet!?" Gilda groaned. "Princesses Celestia and Luna move the sun and moon, for pony's sake!"

"Who are they again?"

"You're a pegasus and you don't know this stuff!? Didn't you learn this in flight kindergarten or something?" The female griffon facepalmed and sighed.

"Flight kindergarten? What the heck are you talking about?"

"I find it strange that you're a pegasus and you don't know squat about it. And I'm a griffon that knows this as much as a pony would." Gilda sighed as she gave a deadpan stare, then counted her talons. "Oh, and your sister's hungry. Just so you know, ponies don't eat meat. They eat stuff like flowers, grains sweets and seem to have no problem with eggs for some reason."

"Thanks for the tip, Gilda-san." Scarlet nodded and smiled at the griffon.

"Well, I'll just give ya 'nuff food for you an' your sis for a day." The griffon leered at the pegasus mare as she tossed a saddlebag full of food at her. "Good luck tryin' to carry that and a foal on your head. You can't do advanced maneuvers anyway, and you're more likely to give the food to your sister."

"I guess?" The golden yellow pegasus mare rolled her eyes and equipped the saddlebag. One of her thoughts was gently putting her sister in teh bag, but went against it and decided to leaver her younger sister on her head at this point. "Wait, where do I start?"

"Well..." Gilda rolled her eyes as she presented a world map of the area. "For starters, you're in the Griffon Kingdom. Equestria's west of here, and it's a three-day flight at best."

"That's fine. I want to take the scenic route anyway."

"Just take your sister... and go. You're wasting my time." The griffon bluntly replied between clenched teeth, motioning for the golden yellow pegasus mare to look back and earning a growl.

Scarlet "Misaki" Prower-Watanabe, now a pegasus mare took in her surroundings and looked up at her younger sister, who went back to sleep in a peaceful manner. At this point, she knew that her younger sister IS a very heavy sleeper and took a deep breath, flapped her wings and jumped. It didn't help that she had a saddlebag of something inside and that her younger sister was on her head.

A feeling of dread filled the pegasus mare as she quickly fell, gravity pulling down on her equine body and the heavy saddlepack. The wind literally blew against her face as her body pierced through the clouds; her red mane and golden yellow tail flickering in an upward direction opposite to her body. Both her arms and wings were tucked in, and she strained to raise them away from her face. Then her wings slowly unfurled and flapped a great deal, gradually bringing her to a stop.

"Huh, so this is the Griffon Kingdom... Wow, it's much smaller than I thought it would be." Scarlet thought as she scanned her surroundings and covered her eyes from the sun. She flew in a easterly direction at full speed, and screamed, "Waaaaahooooo! EQUESTRIA, HERE I COME!"

* * *

_***With Twilight Sparkle, Trixie Lulamoon and Nazou/Crimson Edge***_

On a normal basis, changelings appear to be a slightly mutilated form of pony, except that they all have black coats and blue eyes. And dark green auras. And they appeared to be insect-like. You could say that they are like bees... Or was it wasps? Anyway, they're the opposite of bees. Usually, bees make honey, which is made from the nectar of flowers and such. Changelings, however, feed on love. But y'know, most changelings arent' bad. Nopony would know because when they think changeling, they think Queen Chrysalis the Faker, which is my new official title for her. And most changelings would care less about taking over and caring more about keeping to themselves while harvesting love for their hives.

Enough with my rant, back to the task on hand. (Which is putting a strain on my imagination tank.)

Nazou crossed his arms and sighed as he walked with the two girls. The purple haired girl he dubbed "Dusk Shine" turned out to be a friendly person after all. And that showoff he dubbed "Presto" has a big ego. But she's really experienced with illusions. It was strange in the sense that the blue eyes actually turned out to be from something that resembles blueberries with the luminescence of sapphires.

"I don't get it. What did that voice mean by 'beyond saving'?" Twilight asked.

_"Nanaki's other half despises demons, humans, half-humans and ponies in that order. Which explains his hatred of me and my sister. But I'm not too sure why ponies are involved this time around." Nazou shrugged his shoulders and gave a confused look. _

"I see... I don't really understand why that voice hates a certain alicorn."

_"Same. The only alicorns I know of are Princesses Celestia, Luna and Cadence. Come to think of it, wouldn't Shining Armor be a prince now that he's married to Cadence?" _

"I suppose so. I can't imagine anypony else calling him Prince Armor or something and I still have the thought of Cadence Sparkle."

_"Do you consider Cadence to be your sister, Dusk Shine?" Nazou suddenly asked in a serious tone as he looked down to the ground, his eyes concealed._

"Yes."

_"What about Pinkie Pie and the others?" _

"Y- wait, why are you asking me this?"

_"You're really lucky that you have ponies like Cadence and the others by your side. I doubt that they've had the fortune of seeing someone die. Especially if that someone was family." _

"What are you talking about? I'm sensing some angst here."

_"It's nothing, Dusk Shine. I didn't mean to worry you." The half-demon slowly shook his head._

"Crimson Edge, was it?" Trixie interrupted. _  
_

_"Yeah?"_

"How long have we been here?"

_"Four hours, why?" _

"Trixie sees that we have been circling the same area more than once. Are you sure we are not lost?"

_"Pretty sure. I had the liberty of making a map of this place and it's right... Oh." Nazou let go of the map he held and facepalmed then sighed deeply. "Well, so much for that." _

"Don't you have a compass? Or a sense of direction?" The magician asked.

_"I have a sense of direction, not a compass. I'm pretty sure we're going the right way." _

"Trixie says Crimson has a horrible sense of direction. We have passed the same tree at least once!" Trixie shouted angrily as she looked up and glared at the half-demon. "And you pick now to lose our only way out!? ARGH!" This was followed by her groaning in exasperation.

_"Listen, Presto." Nazou looked down at the female magician with an angry look and growled. "I've been through a lot of stuff in my lifetime, and there's no way I'm going to let someone like you rage about being lost in this jungle. It's not everyday that someone has the chance to berate me for my flaws. Well, I'm not perfect, okay!" _

"Fine. Trixie will stop raging... as you say." The magician sighed and looked up. "Are you a changeling?"

_"No. Take a wild guess at what I am." _

"Trixie is sure that humans do not have ears like that on top of their heads... or tails for that matter."

"Trixie... Crimson's half-human. He's also half-kitsune." Twilight sweatdropped.

"Is it true, Twilight Sparkle?"

"I was actually surprised when I saw him like that for the first time." The librarian answered as she was about to reach for one of his tails when Nazou simply shot a death glare that basically said, "Don't touch the tails."

"Anyway... how old are you, Crimson Edge?"

_"Equine years, kitsune years or human years?" Nazou asked. _

"What are you talking about? You are a unicorn, right?" Trixie reasoned.

_"Nowadays. Kitsune are shapeshifters, but I'm mature enough to do so when needed." The half-demon answered. "I'm also mature enough to not cause trouble with anyone." _

"Tell. Trixie. Age. Now." The magician gave a deadpan look.

_"Four hundred thirty one." Nazou bluntly replied in a matter-of-factly tone. "Why?" _

"Is that your physical age or your actual age?" Twilight inquired.

_"Actual. In fact, Akira's three hundred twenty three." _

"That makes the both of you younger than Princess Celestia."

_"If I wasn't sealed twice, I would have nine tails by now. The only good thing that comes out of being sealed twice for a while is that the aging process has been slowed considerably. How old is she anyway?" The half-demon asked. _

"One thousand five hundred."

_"Something tells me that alicorns have a longer lifespan than kitsune." Nazou muttered to himself. "And humans for that matter." _

"I see. Are you envious?"

_"Nope." The half-human shook his head, then thought. "If Princess Celestia was a kitsune and not an alicorn, she would be a Kyuubi." _

Time passed, and the three "unicorns" came across an open area of the jungle. Twilight and Trixie wiped the sweat off their foreheads with their arms while Nazou looked up and noticed a distant pink twinkle in the trees. He was already walking on the tree trunk when the magician stared at him.

"What are you doing, Crimson Edge?" Trixie asked.

_"I'm going for that pink light, Trixie." Nazou answered. _

"Wait, are you walking on trees!?" Twilight gasped.

_"Yeah. I almost forgot to tell you that I'm a ninja." The half-demon replied as he walked upwards into a branch and pulled himself up. _

"You're also a ninpony!? IS there anything else you forgot to tell us?" The librarian gaped at the sight. "Nopony can walk on trees and water or even stay invisible."

_"And that's why I'm a ninja. Uhh, to be more specific. I'm actually a chuunin." Nazou sweatdropped as he gave an awkward grin at the librarian. "I also doubt that ninjas would have any use here in Equestria." _

Twilight and Trixie watched as their half-human friend (no, not in that sense) nimbly and effortlessly jumped from one tree to another. While he did that, the two girls found themselves to be surrounded by the plethora of blue eyes again. It slowly moved closer and closer, revealing them to be something that resembled spiders. With big compound sapphire blue eyes. Both girls were slightly surprised and both their hands suddenly glowed a magenta and dark blue aura, respectively.

"If you ask me, I prefer to use my brains over my instincts." Twilight said as she stood against Trixie's back.

"Trixie agrees to that, Twilight Sparkle." The magician nodded and replied. "If we get nothing here, then this turns out to be a waste of time. And I still consider you to be a rival. Truce?"

"For now, I guess."

The pairs of blue eyes twinkled as the Sapphire Spiders? (That's what I'm gonna call them, right? Man, I need more enemies.) scuttled closer and upon a closer look was apparently much bigger than the two. One of them was about to slash at the librarian when she dodged and countered with a magic bolt. Trixie followed by disappeared in a puff of smoke then reappeared above and fired a series of blue magic bolts on the same spider. The first spider screeched with pain and made a high-pitched screech, summoning the others to its side.

One of the other spiders then proceeded to swat Twilight aside and aim for Trixie. With the librarian on sight, the second one then scuttled to her and pinned the librarian down with one of its legs, disabling her. The other leg was ready to slice her head off when a magenta bolt came from point blank, knocking the second spider off balance. Next came another magic bolt, but bigger and stronger. It prevented the spider from basically drooling on the magician and came from Twilight; Trixie shook her head and stuck out her tongue out of dismay of being covered with arachnid guts. Or was it crystallized?

Trixie rolled to the side and shot several rapid-fire shots at the first spider, while Twilight charged up her hands and fired four homing shots at the second. There were many scratches on both and they both roared at the girls, intending to eat them. The light blue magician rolled her eyes and turned to Twilight and muttered, "I... I-I can't believe I'm forced to resort to this, Twilight Sparkle. I would never dream of doing this."

"Same. Combine our powers?" The librarian gave Trixie an open hand and nodded.

"Just this once." The magician shook hands and gave a glare at her rival. "The day will come when the Great and Powerful Trixe is more powerful than Twilight Sparkle."

Twilight Sparkle and Trixie Lulamoon kept the spiders at bay with their magic, occasionally dodging their swipes. Meanwhile, with Nazou, with a certain running style designed to increase drag, the branches shrinking the more he ascended. He only had a moment to do as much as touch the trees and jumped skyward.

It was one moment later that he found a pink orb twinkling somewhere nearby that he dashed near it and tried to reach out for it with his hands. Time slowed as his left arm strained for the orb above and the girls fought the spiders down below. But then, his hand edged closer and closer and grasped it, briefly engulfing his hands in a sky blue aura. Time went back to normal before Nazou realized that he was falling.

_~Get ready...~ _

"What?" Twilight heard a voice in her head.

_~You're gonna need to put up a barrier around yourself and Presto.~ The voice commanded. _

"Twilight Sparkle, what is wrong this time?" Trixie asked.

"Heads up, Trixie." The librarian nodded as she put up a magical barrier around herself and Trixie.

Back with Nazou, he summoned six ethereal kunai, three in each hand and attached exploding tags to them, then made an intense bombardment of tagged kunai and shuriken at the Sapphire Spiders, making sure to not touch the barrier. Next, he opened his hands and a crimson flame appeared. He screamed "FOX FIRE!" as he tossed the wisp at the tagged kunai, creating a large blast range that somehow managed to not touch the barrier.

When Twilight removed the barrier a couple of minutes later, there wasn't anything left except for a couple of sapphires on the ground and a male-figure walking towards them as the smoke cleared. (Wow, I'm getting worse here...)

"Crimson? Did you get that orb?" Twilight asked.

_"I did. How's your experience with your human form?" Nazou inquired. _

"Trixie does not like human form." The magician stated.

"I find it strange that humans use their hands to do magic." The librarian replied.

It was a moment later that the three found themselves at a nearby train station in Vanhoover. Truth be told, Vanhoover seems to resemble a warm seaside harbor. It has two links to the rest of Equestria: by train or boat. Everypony (except Nazou) was happy to be unicorns again, but the male unicorn stallion sighed and shook his head, and lifted his hoof in a manner similar to reaching out to someone... or somepony in this case. The pink aura left the stallion and circled Twilight Sparkle twice, then she quietly absorbed it. All she felt was her body being surrounded by a gust of wind and being lifted into the air for a moment, then descended onto the floor.

"What is happening to Twilight Sparkle?" Trixie asked the unicorn stallion.

_"Last I remember, Dusk Shine absorbed the Orb of Honesty. This time, she absorbed the Orb of Kindness. I don't know much about the Elements of Harmony, but I do know that she has a lot of raw potential."_

"She does?"

_"Yeah. Anyway, thanks for coming with us... Presto." _

"Pity. I was actually expecting you to remember my real name." The light blue showmare sighed deeply and facehoofed, then shook her head. "But that doesn't mean that I can't strive to become better than Twilight Sparkle."

_"You have standards, don't you?"_

"And I have. I bid you two goodbye." Trixie saluted and disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

Twilight sensed a feeling of serenity within herself and made a deep breath as she felt her body being surrounded by the two orbs. When she opened her eyes, she was back to being a unicorn mare again. The first thing she did was buy two train tickets to Ponyville with the little bits that she brought and gave one of them to Crimson Edge.

"Crimson Edge." The purple mare sighed deeply.

_"Yeah, Dusk Shine?" CE gave a confused look. _

"My name's Twilight Sparkle. Not Dusk Shine." Twilight answered as she gave a deadpan tone.

_"Twi... Twili... Twilight... Sparkle?" _

"Twilight Sparkle. It's not that hard to remember."

Crimson Edge repeated a couple times and finally managed to recall her name. She was finally happy that he was able to remember again. As the two unicorns boarded the train and gave the tickets to the conductor, the two sat together, not as aquaintances... not as fighting partners, but as friends. (NO, not in that sense). The train whistled for a moment and departed the station, on route to Ponyville.

"So, where's the next gate, Crimson?" Twilight asked.

_"I'm... not too sure." CE answered. "Anyway, what's Chrysalis' problem with you?" _

"She's after my brother. What about you?"

_"The Crystal Faker's after my sister. Well, not in the sense with Shining Armor, but more like after her power." _

"I- Wait. Crystal Faker?" The purple mare inquired with a confused look.

_"That was mentioned in the- oh, nevermind. You already have someone for that." The unicorn stallion chuckled. "Oh, and I'm dreading the day you and Cadence learn space-time magic." _

"I'll be looking forward to that." Twilight smirked to herself and gave a sunny smile. "Anyway... I noticed a picture of your family earlier. Can you tell me about them?" She presented the same picture that Shining Armor showed Akira in chapter 5.

_"Oh... That's my copy." Crimson was given the photo and looked at it, then began. "The guys in here... are my nieces and nephews. If you look here, my nephews have green eyes, while me and my nieces have blue eyes." _

"Then who's the fox girl next to 'Kira?"

_"That's my older niece, Scarlet. My brother-in-law adopted her when she was just a little kit, making my kid sister her mother and me her uncle. And my other sister." The unicorn stallion sighed._

"You have another sister?"

_"Uh-huh. I didn't get to meet her until waay later in life, namely, my late twenties. And her name's Iris. She's the middle sister. I'm the oldest... and Akira's the youngest." Crimson chuckled. "Why did Princess Luna buck me so hard?" _

"She... probably didn't recognize you. I have a strange feeling that she only knows your normal form and Princess Celestia with your current form."

_"I see. Well, just so you know, I don't have any feelings for you or the others, okay?" The unicorn stallion gave a deadpan look. _

"Sure. That's fine anyway. I don't have a lot of experience with stallions anyway... aside from Shining Armor."

_"Twilight, you're getting experience with a stallion like me. But don't get the wrong idea. The last thing I want is Cadence doing her thing on us." He shook his head and quickly raised up his left hoof. "I don't think I've seen Spike before. What does he look like?"_

"Well, Spike's a purple baby dragon with green scales."

_"Wouldn't you be Spike's mom?" The stallion reasoned. _

"I'm actually more of an older sister to him. In fact, he considers Shining Armor to be an older brother and his relationship with Cadence is the same as mine."

_"I see..." CE wondered, then flatly replied. "He's a western dragon." _

"Western? What are you talking about?" Twilight asked.

_"I can't believe you're making me sound so much older than I already am... but anyway." The stallion cleared his throat and began. "There used to be two kinds of dragons: western and eastern. Western Dragons generally have a muscular build with the ability to fly and breathe fire... and are usually greedy. Eastern Dragons have a more serpentine build along with the ability to control the water along with flight. They are generally nicer than the Western Dragons if you think about it, though." _

Twilight took extensive notes as Nazou went on and on about dragons. As she took notes, she was fangirling inside about this. Even though there's no proof of Eastern dragons in Equestria, it's going to help uncover any knowledge about dragonkind here. She noticed his impartial tone as he explained in a calm manner. In fact, her notes were so extensive, it seemed like she was writing a massive research paper.

_"Woah, slow down there, Twilight. As much as you want all of Equestria to know more about dragons, you should slow down so that you can understand your writing." Crimson calmly responded and chuckled. "Looks like we passed... Cloudsdale, was it?" _

"We just passed it. Plus, you would need a cloud-walking spell in order to be able to stay in Cloudsdale."

_"Oh, right." CE nodded and gasped at the sight of a dark grey unicorn filly and a golden-yellow pegasus mare flying through. When he blinked, he rubbed his eyes and shook his head, then muttered, "Something you don't see everyday." _

The purple mare stopped taking notes and turned to the window. It wasn't long until home was 'round the corner. As soon as the train stopped, the two unicorns got off and were suddenly ambushed by the rest of the Mane 5 (and Spike). Pinkie gave both unicorns a strong bear hug out of sheer joy while Rainbow Dash and Applejack sweatdropped at the sight. Fluttershy and Rarity walked in this scene and were about to start hugging Twilight when the two backed off, seeing as the pink Earth pony mare was coming close to crushing the two.

"I'm soo~ happy that you two are okay! Are your eyes fine? Hungry? Thirsty? Still-" Pinkie Pie grinned as she tightly hugged the two.

_"Too... much hugging! Argh." Crimson's face turned blue with shock. _

The pink mare let go and the two unicorns doubled on the floor coughing their guts out. Okay fine, I'm kidding. But they still had to catch their breath from that bear hug. Spike ran up to his "friend" and gave the purple mare a less threatening hug.

"Thank Celestia you're still alive!" Rarity exclaimed. "Are you two alright-"

"Ahll handle this, Rarity." Applejack cleared her throat.

"Oh, fine."

"We were worried 'bout you two! What the hay happened?" The orange mare asked as soon as they were able to breathe. "And ya worried Spike here almost to death!"

[Twilight told the Stetson-toting mare about everything that had happened so far since being separated.]

"So yer sayin' that you an' Crimson here managed to survive being bucked in the face by Princess Luna!? Somethin' tells me that Crimson's not a normal pony."

"He isn't." The purple mare flatly replied.

"Wait, what!?" The Stetson-toting mare's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. "He's not a changeling, is he?"

_"Nope. But there's a limit to how many times I can switch forms per day." Crimson answered for the purple mare. "But I need to do it somewhere big... like Sweet Apple Acres or something."_

"Oh, alright. Come with me." Applejack nodded. "I have a strange hunch that Applebloom and the others will want to come an' see."

"Are you okay, Twilight?" Spike asked.

"I still am. I'm really sorry for worrying you so much." Twilight apologized.

"It's time for him to reveal his true form..." Fluttershy murmured.

"What was that?" Rainbow Dash asked with a suspicous look.

The butter yellow pegasus mare eeped at the response and averted her gave and didn't say anymore as the six mares, stallion and dragon went over to the farm.

_**Sweet Apple Acres**_

"So, what are you going to show us, Crimson?" Rainbow Dash asked.

_"For starters, everyone else needs to know about it. Out of everyone I met so far, you, Shining Armor and Cadence are the only ones who know about my true form. And for the record, I'm straight." The unicorn stallion replied. _

"How did you-"

_"I chose now to read your mind." CE smirked. _

"Argh!" The cyan pegasus groaned and facehoofed.

_"U mad?" Crimson Edge chuckled, then put on a troll face. _

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes and Crimson took two steps forward and looked up at the sun. The first thing he did was absorb solar energy (he actually prefers lunar energy) until his entire body was almost radiating a pink aura. His horn glowed a deep red aura as he slowly engulfed himself in flames, his mane spiking up somewhat. When the flames died down, instead of a pony was a male half-demon with four tails and a pair of vulpine ears on his head. Instead of a coat, he was back to the clothes he wore in the first chapter. The right side of his face had two red fang-marks. Oh, and his short and spiky hair was barely an inch below shoulder length.

For the most part, the cyan pegasus was right. No matter the form, the eyes and hair/mane color never change. Everypony looked up as Nazou looked down, his eyes concealed.

"Is this... what you were trying to tell me?" Rarity asked.

_"I suppose so." _

"Whoa..." Pinkie gasped. "Is this somekind of trick?"

_"Nope, this is my true form." Nazou shook his head and turned to Fluttershy, who was hiding behind Applejack. "What's wrong?" _

"I... I..." Fluttershy wavered.

_"Don't worry about it." The half-demon patted the butter yellow pegasus mare's head to reassure her, then his face turned beet red upon gazing at her innocence-filled eyes. "Uhhhh..." _

"Why's your face all red, Crimsie?" Pinkie asked, then gave a mischievious look and a sly chuckle. "Oh... I know where this is going."

"待て！これはそのようなものだ。"_ [Wait! It's not like that.] Nazou stammered. _

"You're doing a shiptease." The pink mare smirked and then groaned at the half-demon. "Kreemmsiieee... We're not supposed to be shipping anyone here!"

"私たちを一緒に出荷しないでください。" [Don't ship us together.] Fluttershy's face was the same shade of red that Nazou had, but much brighter.

Both of their faces went back to their respective colors and gave visible sighs.

"Crimson, Fluttershy. How is it that both of you are able to talk like that?" Rarity asked.

_"Neighponese has always been my first language. I'm not too-" Nazou looked down then quickly looked up as he closed his eyes and blushed while thinking. "Wait a sec... Small Lady has pink hair and red eyes, while Fluttershy has pink mane and blue eyes. Argh, this isn't helping at all!" His current thoughts made him scratch his head in frustration._

"I've heard it once or twice from my mother." Fluttershy sheepishly chuckled. "It... must have been in the back of my head for a very long time."

_"Anyway... I have a strange feeling that the third Gate is somewhere in the Everfree." The half-demon cleared his throat and then frowned as he reverted back to a stallion. "I'm really sorry for not telling everyone sooner. I-" _

"Yah don't hafta 'polagize no more, Crimson." Applejack put a forehoof on the stallion's shoulder. "Rainbow Dash tole us the entire thing. So, don't worry 'bout it. An' we're friends now. Heh, you do realize that you're the first uhhh... how-to-say-this-without-sounding-awkward-at-the-same-time... male friend we've had. Urk, not in that sense, okay!"

_"I agree with you there. Besides, I haven't seen Applebuck in ages." _

"It's Applebloom, sugahcube. Have ya been tah the genderbent mirror of this world?" The Stetson-toting mare asked.

_"Not that I could think of." The stallion shrugged his shoulders. "I should go one time."_

Spike walked up to Crimson and looked up at him with a flat look, while the unicorn stallion looked down with a confused look.

"I don't think we've met each other before." The dragon sheepishly chuckled.

_"I doubt that. Barbara, right?" Crimson asked. _

"Spike."

_"Name's Crimson Edge. You must be Twilight's assistant, right?" _

"Yep. You're not a changeling, are you?" Spike asked.

_"No. I'm actually half-human."_

"What's a human?"

_"He doesn't know what a human is? I should tell him the basics, then. I should be impartial as much as possible." Crimson thought, then answered. "Humans are bipedal creatures with a latent power." _

"Latent?" The dragon inquired. "Are there other kinds of dragons back then, Crimson?"

_"There were two kinds: Western and Eastern." The unicorn stallion explained. "Western dragons have a more muscular build, have a penchant for gems, usually walk on four legs due to their gargatuan size and are usually able to breathe fire. But there are few that can breathe ice." _

"Dragons can have ice breath?"

_"They can. But those with that ability died out much faster." Crimson continued. "Anyway, Eastern dragons have a more serpentine build, are wingless with variations on the number of toes and are water deities along with a wise and benevolent nature in a certain culture. I would be really surprised if I saw an Eastern dragon today in Equestria. Both kinds of dragons have the gift of longevity." _

_Twilight trotted up to the two as Spike gave the stallion a confused stare, then the unicorn stallion rolled his eyes and went on as he sighed. "It means that they have long lives... Something that my liege has."_

"Are you some kind of knight?" The purple mare asked.

_"Maybe." _

"Tell me this is good to be true. You better not be lying, Crimson." Twilight leered at the older stallion.

_"Does this sound like I'm lying?" Crimson Edge's tone of voice was serious as he gave a deadpan tone._

"No."

_"Neither of you may have realized it, but I'm from the past. On a technical note, I'm MUCH older than everyone else here." The stallion answered. "Possibly even moreso than the Princesses." _

"But you look slightly younger than Shining Armor!" Spike retorted.

_"Looks are deceiving, Twilght Sparkle." CE shook his head, then summoned a black and yellow book. "I have been around long enough to have seen dragons personally. Even though I'm a bit over four hundred thirty, it feels so much like I've been around for much longer." _

"So you're saying that... you're a living relic?"

_"I might as well be. But, y'know... it's a pain in the neck to keep up with the times. I wasn't able to be around Akira for most of her life and missed, well, at least eight thousand years worth. Think a thousand years without your sister is bad? Well, eight thousand is much worse!" Crimson grinned then his eyes started glowing, then felt lightheaded when he started seeing double. _

[Crimson...?]

_"What the!?-" The stallion thought. "My head, it's... Waaaagh!" _

_Everything flashed and whited out..._

* * *

_Temporal Burst #1_

_Leaves fell under a cold autumn afternoon as a lone, human figure walked solemnly. Upon a closer look, it was a __light-brown/blonde_-haired woman clad in a light pink longsleeved shirt and an orange long skirt; her dual-colored hair bounced about as her green and black eyes shone brightly. She stopped walking and and stared at a pink alicorn foal.

_The woman's green and black locked with the foal's purple, and a calm sensation overwhelmed the two as the former faded into several cyan orbs of light and entered the foal. Feathers flew around and the alicorn foal, now a filly, looks up at the leaves and flies away, engulfed in a light blue aura._

_It then switched to Twilight and Cadence trotting side by side, then cherry blossoms flew around and the pink alicorn mare cantered with two foals by her side. One of them was a white alicorn colt with a blue and purple mane, and the other was obviously a light pink unicorn filly with a blonde mane. Both foals went ahead of their mother and looked back at her, __who nodded at the two and faded into the horizon as the trees whited out..._

_Next, was a gamboge pegasus filly looking up at the sky. She then turned to her now fully grown wings and felt a light sensation and felt light-hearted as she jumped into the air and soared, leaving behind a single feather on the ground. _

* * *

When Crimson recovered, a single tear slowly flowed down his equine face as he smiled, his eyes concealed. He didn't have a clear idea, but the thought of his sisters sleeping peacefully under an oak tree in a summer afternoon made him smile. The sudden thought of Twilight and Cadence doing the same thing in the spring under cherry blossoms were even more cute. But he was able to wipe it before either one could notice his tears... of joy.

Before he could say anything, the CMC appear out of nowhere and pounce on him, thinking him to be somepony else... The unicorn stallion rolled his eyes and stared down at the fillies with a flat look.

"I thought I saw something weird around here." Sweetie Belle gave a confused look.

_"Let me guess: Paranormal Investigator Cutie Mark?" Crimson said. _

"How did you know that?" Scootaloo asked.

_"Heh, heh. Wait, have I met you two before?" The unicorn stallion asked. _

"Nope. Name's Scootaloo." The gamboge pegasus filly looked up and grinned.

"My name's Sweetie Belle." The white unicorn filly nodded.

"And you should remember me." A new voice interrupted.

_"Huh? What?" Crimson shifted around and found himself looking up at a pair of eyes from above as he felt something on his head. "Applebloom, right? Now get off my head!" He shook his head and stared at Applebloom as she rolled off his head and trotted in front of him. _

"Can you play with us, please?" The youngest Apple sibling asked.

_"I- Oh, great, no." The unicorn stallion facehoofed and groaned as the Cutie Mark Crusaders put up their lips and stared at him in an unbelievably cute manner, then thought, "This has to be a new interrogation technique." He sighed deeply as he looked down at the three fillies and consented. _

"Y'know, it's really hard to say no to that face." Applejack commented.

_"Has anyone else tried to?" Crimson asked. _

"Ahm pretty sure that nopony can resist their cute an' innocent faces when they pout like that, sugahcube." The Stetson-toting mare answered. "Besides, it's a good chance fer ya to know 'em better."

_"Well, there's that. Pfft, what am I, friendless?" _

"That's what yer implyin'. Oh, and good luck." Applejack grinned as she returned to her job.

Twilight and Spike trotted over to the unicorn stallion and basically gave him their wishes, prompting Crimson to tell the younger Sparkle to remember the translation spell.

_**Later in Ponyville... **_

"Is it true that you're an old stallion?" Scootaloo asked.

_"Maybe." Crimson flatly answered. "Why do you ask?" _

"I overheard you telling Twilight and the others about how you're... not... really-" The gamboge pegasus chuckled nervously. "You're not a changeling, are you?"

_"Wait... why do you want to know?" The unicorn stallion suspisciously asked as he bumped into a golden yellow pegasus mare. The mare in question had a dark grey unicorn foal hanging on to her and the two locked eyes for a moment. "Have we met somewhere? You look familiar."_

"Ummm... where is this?" The golden-yellow pegasus mare inquired.

_"Ponyville." _

"Ponyville?" The pegasus mare repeated.

_"Ponyville. You and that filly look strangely familiar." Crimson leered at the mare. _

"How so?"

_"I know a certain fox girl with golden yellow fur, blue eyes and red hair. Her younger sister's usually clad in grey and is also a brunette like her older brothers." The unicorn stallion replied. "What's your name?" _

"Scarlet." The pegasus mare answered. "This little one's Izumi."

_"Hmm... now, where have I heard- Wait. What are you two doing here?" Crimson asked with a worried look. "Misaki-chan, are you okay?" _

"Yeah. Mom managed to buy enough time so that we can escape while fighting with these strange black creatures led by a teal-haired woman." Scarlet recounted. "I heard the teal-haired woman mutter something about wanting to take over and having revenge against someone named 'Mi Amore Cadenza'."

_"Teal-haired... I was afraid of this." Crimson looked down as he replied with a worried look. "Akira was taken by Chrysalis." _

"Who?" The golden yellow mare asked.

_"Chrysalis is the queen of the changelings, a race of shapeshifters who feed on love... and souls. I'm not sure on that last part, but the first one I'm pretty sure." The unicorn stallion explained as he paced left and right. "As much as I want to say that Akira can take care of herself, she's in danger. If Kagami is released, well, let's just say that it won't end well... because of how Kagami can be." _

"Nazou-ojisan, please don't remind me about Kaga-san." Scarlet paled at the thought. "Oh, who are these three?"

"Ahm Applebloom." The lemon Earth pony filly grinned.

"My name's Scootaloo." The gamboge pegasus smiled.

"And mine's Sweetie Belle." The white unicorn chuckled. "And we're..."

"THE CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS!" All three fillies shouted at a volume that made Crimson's ears bleed and collapse, while waking up Izumi at the same time. "Ummm, are you okay, Crimson?"

One hour later...

"Ah didn't mean tah make his ears bleed." The youngest Apple sibling sighed deeply at the pegasus mare with ears down as she looked at the unconscious stallion's body.

"Ohhhh." Sweetie Belle sighed as she hung her head in fear.

"We're sorry." Scootaloo groaned while doing the same with the others.

"It's okay, you didn't know." Scarlet answered. "If you did the same thing with Akira, she would never dare lash out at someone your age."

"Why not?" The lemon filly asked.

"Mom's always used to- nevermind." Scarlet chuckled. "Anyway, are you three the only members of the Cutie Mark Crusaders?"

"Nope. There's Dinky and Pipsqueak." The youngest Apple sibling answered. "Do you have a cutie mark?"

"This is a cutie mark?" The pegasus mare wondered as she glanced at her flank. Hers was a spanner behind a red cross. "Wait, what IS a cutie mark?"

"You're a pegasus mare and you don't know what a cutie mark is!?" Sweetie Belle exclaimed.

Okay, one lengthy explanation later...

"Ohhhh, so that's it. I'm not really from around here, Sweetie Belle." Scarlet shook her head and chuckled to herself.

"What's yours about?" Scootaloo asked.

"Mine? Well, you could say that it has to do with machines." The pegasus mare answered. "And I also give flying lessons." She presented her flight instructor's license to the three fillies.

Scarlet and the CMC walked around the town as the latter gave the former a tour of the town, introducing her to city hall, the school, the market, the library, when the four abruptly bumped into Rainbow Dash. It was surprising how the two pegasi mares recognized each other... yep, RD's definitely made an impression on everyone.

"Scarlet... is that you?" The cyan pegasus asked.

"I could say the same." The golden yellow pegasus deadpanned.

"YOU KNOW EACH OTHER!?" The CMC exclaimed.

"Heh, you could say that they're... friends of mine at this point." RD rubbed the back of her head, then grinned. "What brings you to Ponyville?"

"Ulp." Her face turned a slight green as the golden yellow mare covered her mouth with her hoof. "Rainbow Dash?"

"Yeah?"

"I think I'm gonna be sick." Scarlet gagged as she turned away and summoned a paper bag, and made the loudest puking sound ever that would attract nearby ponies attention.

Rainbow Dash and the CMC looked as the golden yellow mare turned green and ran away...

"How do you know her, Rainbow Dash?" Scootaloo asked.

"Scarlet? She's basically a clone of Twilight. Except that she's a mechanic and not a librarian." The cyan pegasus answered. "Well, one thing's for sure."

"What?" The CMC tilted their heads in confusion.

"She's eaten the baked bads." RD nodded and facehoofed. "Let's find her before anything else happens."

The other two nodded and trotted after the golden yellow mare, who staggered as she trotted and stopped short of fainting near Sugarcube Corner. It was a moment later that she grabbed a nearby bucket and made the worst retching sound.

"Are you okay, Scarlet?" Sweetie Belle asked with a worried look.

When the golden yellow pegasus stopped retching for a moment, she gave a sick look (no, no that kind of sick) at the white filly and answered, "Can't you see I have food poisoning!?"

"Food poisoning? What's that?" Scootaloo inquired.

"Food poisoning is... BLARGH! Fever, lots of vomit- Ulp. Uwaaaaargh..." Scarlet apologized as she gave a weak smile. "I'm really sorry for this, Sweetie Belle."

Rainbow Dash trotted closer and briefly patted the redhead mare's head when she frowned and said, "Scarlet, are you sure you're okay?"

"I... I'll be fine. It's probably the slice of muffin I ate."

"Wait. What muffin?"

"It's that good-looking one that had potato chips, soda, lemons, and worms." The golden yellow mare groaned. "I think other ponies got sick as soon as they had a bite or two."

"Baked bads." The cyan pegasus quickly answered.

"What?"

"How many did you eat?" RD asked.

"I managed to buy three baker's dozen worth for fifteen bits before anyone else could go for the rest." Scarlet replied. "And it didn't help that I was really hungry and that a random muffin-loving mare managed to have some."

"THREE BAKER'S DOZEN of baked bads!?" The cyan mare shook her head and facehoofed. "Don't you have a place to crash in?"

"Nope. I... I've been flying nonstop for two days now." The redheaded mare weakly chuckled as she trotted with a lot of effort. Her vision was fading and everything sounded a lot like it was echoing, and her stomach growled loudly as she tried to suppress her sickness. At this point, she was staggering and it looked very much like the poor mare was moderately dehydrated and unbelievably hungry.

Then... poor Scarlet finally fainted.

Much later...

"I thought I saw the last of 'em..." The first voice muttered.

_"On a technical note, that wasn't even half-bad." The second voice chuckled._

"The baked bads? Really?" The first voice groaned. "You would have an iron stomach if you didn't get sick from eating 'em."

_"Well, it's been a while since I've heard of something like that." The second voice chuckled to himself. "Besides, after I recovered, I went into the Everfree and grabbed some blue plants and ate 'em. Huh... I should have cooked 'em first."_

"You ate poison joke!? Are you crazy!?" The first voice exclaimed and continued with a worried tone. "Crimsie... are you sure you're alright?"

_"For starters, I've eaten poisoned food before. They're weird, but I've eaten enough that I rarely get sick from them. Plus, poison joke has a strangely... starchy-ish taste." Crimson Edge laughed softly. "Pinkie, you're able to have hot sauce on your cupcakes, and had some rainbow." _

Scarlet stirred to the voices and rubbed her head a bit... and woke up to the sounds of her uncle... and a pink Earth pony mare.

"Ohshe'supshe'sup." Pinkie talked at an almost incomprehensible speed, until the unicorn stallion gave her a deadpan look. "Anyway, I heard from Dashie about your food poisoning thing."

"Wha? Who? Where am I?" The golden pegasus mare mumbled.

_"Sugarcube Corner. Wait, you're a pegasus!?" Crimson gasped. _

"You're a unicorn!?" Scarlet exclaimed and quickly calmed down. "Wait... who are you again?"

_"Misaki-chan, you should stay away from the baked bads." The unicorn stallion chuckled softly. "Don't worry about Izumi-chan, I'm holding on to her right now."_

"Nazou-ojisan, is that you?"

_"It has to be. Anyway, this is Pinkie Pie, one of Rainbow Dash's friends." Crimson made an introducing gesture towards the pink mare. "Pinkie Pie, meet my older niece, Scarlet." _

"HimynamesPinkamenaDianePie,buteveryponycallsmePinkie. Iusuallyhavelotsoffunwithcak esandmuffinsandpies,butI'mtakingabreak." Pinkie giggled and took a deep breath. "Ican'tbelieveyouflewallthewayhere fromgriffoncountrywithyoursi ster. Youshouldhavetakenabreak and..."

_"I agree with Pinkie here. Oh, almost forgot, Rainbow Dash and the Cutie Mark Crusaders brought you here after you collapsed." Crimson grinned, then shook his head. "You're not used to the food here, are you?"_

"Not yet." Scarlet shook her head. "A grey pegasus mare managed to take some of my muffins before I could even start."

"Ditzy Doo." The unicorn stallion and baker flatly answered.

"Who?"

_"Ditzy Doo, aka Derpy Hooves." Crimson explained. "A quirky pegasus mare with an intense passion for muffins and a big heart; she's also the mailmare for Ponyville and Canterlot." _

"Canterlot?" The pegasus mare inquired.

_"Canterlot's the capital of Equestria, and it's 20-30 minutes away from here." The unicorn stallion grinned. "It's also the home of Princesses Celestia and Luna." _

"Are they the rulers of this place?"

"Of course, silly filly." Pinkie 'booped' Scarlet and chuckled. "Princess Celestia moves the sun, while Princess Luna moves the moon."

"Wait, the sun and moon are moved by the monarchs?" Both Scarlet and Crimson asked.

"Neither of you know about it?" The baker frowned. "Are you-"

"We are." Uncle and niece nodded as the two gave a deadpan look.

_"Pinkie, to be fair, I've actually spent a week here, at best. And I'm more used to a world where the sun and moon move on their own." Crimson answered. "It's how I was raised." _

"I see. Well, I was raised knowing that the sun and moon don't move on their own." Pinkie chuckled. "Come to think of it, neither of you have a job."

_"Oh, yeah... I forgot about that." The unicorn stallion facehoofed and gave a nervous chuckled. "Well, Misaki. We might as well stay in Ponyville for a bit. At least until... it's over." _

"What's over?" The pegasus mare asked.

_"I was recently able to switch between my normal and equine forms, but... that also means I can't leave. And you can't revert to your Mobian form either." Crimson sighed loudly, prompting his younger niece to giggle. _

"Anyway... uhhh, since I was the one who gave you the baked bads, how's about I give you a free cupcake instead?" Pinkie offered.

"No." Scarlet firmly refused in a respective manner, then sighed and thought. "How I managed to convert Mobian Rings to Equestrian bits is a complete mystery to me."

Uncle and niece left Sugarcube Corner and went their separating ways, prompting the latter to come across the post office. The inside resembledwas filled to the brim with various pegasi, including a grey-coated blonde mare, trotting slowly. Ditzy Doo groaned with pain as she stopped and looked at her barrel, then was about to collapse out of exhaustion when her supervisor, a blue pegasus stallion stopped the mare from doing so.

"Aurgh... must... fly... Canterlot... mail..." The grey mare groaned.

"Enough. You're currently unable to do your job at this rate." The blue stallion gave a firm look.

"But-"

"But nothing. There is no way that I would let you fly to Canterlot in that kind of condition." The supervisor shook his head. "Go home and have some rest."

"Oh, alright. But what about tomorrow?" Ditzy Doo asked. "Who's going to do the morning route to Canterlot? I won't have enough time with mail here in Ponyville."

"I'm sure I'll find somepony for that." He sighed as the grey mare left, then was slightly surprised by a golden yellow-coated redheaded mare. "Name and business."

"My name's Scarlet, and I heard someone needs to cover a mail route for Canterlot." The pegasus mare quickly answered. "I want to take it."

"Well... for one thing, Ditzy Doo appears to be unable to do her job due to the baked bads. And another thing, aren't you a bit young to be taking on this job, young filly?"

"I'm 18 for crying out loud! Of course I'm old enough to work. That's why I have an afternoon shift back home in Mobius! But still, I have to convince this guy to let me take on the job... if only long enough for that mare to get well soon." The vixen/pegasus mare thought, then stared at the stallion with her sky blue eyes, filled with determination

"I see. So you must be one of those Cloudsdale pegasi, huh? Are you sure you want to take on the Canterlot route?"

The look on the pegasus mare's eyes convinced the supervisor to hire Scarlet, if only temporarily.

* * *

_***With Rainbow Dash and the Cutie Mark Crusaders***_

Rainbow Dash and the Cutie Mark Crusaders stared uneasily at an old and abandoned house as it creaked and had that strange "haunted house" vibe. Sweetie Belle looked up and saw that the house was falling apart and shook her head, while Applebloom had a worried look on her face; Scootaloo chuckled nervously, then coughed as she stared at the decrepit house.

The four knew it was going to be a loong time until Scarlet and Crimson were able to live in a house of their own...

=Chapter 8 End=

* * *

This is a very long chapter, and it's a nightmare. *sighs*

Shining Armor:So this is the author's notes...

HB DS:What the heck are you doing here!?

Shining Armor:Well...

HB DS:I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to be breaking the wall, Shining Armor.

Shining Armor:Aren't you a bit-

HB DS:For crying out loud... Argh!


	9. Okami Celestia, Chronicle of the Wings

**_Alt. Title:This Really Doesn't Make Any Sense At All._**

_More notes:I'll only go as far as an average friendship between a canon/mainstream and original character. And I'm trying hard NOT to have Akira go Mary Sue. But one thing's for sure, what I've meant by "that" sense, I meant sexual. NO! I'm not that sick. Plus, I'm having a lot of fun deciding whether Celestia's physically older or younger than my OC's, but... she's immortal. _

_Warning: Possible FluttershyxOC and OOC Celestia_

* * *

The previous day, with Rainbow Dash's help, the CMC finally remodeled the house... looking new, but they haven't obtained their cutie marks yet. A couple months have passed since the events of Call of the Cutie, and still no cutie mark. What's up with that!?

"So... this is gonna take awhile, won't it?" Scootaloo wondered.

"Yup." Applebloom nodded. "D'ya think we'll get our carpentry cutie marks this time?"

"I sure hope so." Sweetie Belle grinned. "But I don't think there'll be places we can reach on our own."

_"Callin' for help?" _

Rainbow Dash turned around to be greeted by Crimson Edge.

"You sure you want to live in here, Crimson?" RD asked.

_"I'm pretty sure." The unicorn stallion nodded. "I have a strange feeling that Applebuck, Scooteroll and Silver Belle will come closer to obtaining their cutie marks."_

"It's Applebloom, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, Crimson." The cyan pegasus rolled her eyes and frowned. "And what do you mean by that last part?"

_"I just learned how to see the future. And they can be rather... vague." Crimson thought. "I know that they'll be able to get their cutie marks later on." _

One house-building montage later... (I'm horrible with this kind of thing.)

_"Thanks so much, girls." Crimson nodded. _

"If it wasn't for your help, we wouldn't be able to restore this house back to brand new." Rainbow Dash smiled.

_"Awww, you're embarrassing me." The unicorn stallion chuckled. _

"You're too humble." The cyan pegasus bluntly replied. "Speaking of, where are the Crusaders?"

That... was answered by three high-pitched screams from inside; the two adult ponies quickly entered the newly restored house and encountered... a ghost. Neither pegasus mare and unicorn stallion were amused by this, in fact, the latter walked up to the ghost and sighed as he shook his head and facehoofed. The ghost in question appeared to be a little girl and was clad in a simple dress.

[Where on Earth am I?] The ghost asked.

_"Not Earth. Equestria." Crimson corrected. "And what are you doing here?" _

[I... I don't remember. All I know is that it has been a long time for me.]

_"I... see. Do you mean no harm?" The unicorn stallion asked. _

[I have no malicious intentions. Wait... I have heard of your kind.]

_"You... have?" _

[You must be a direct descendant from that clan.]

_"What clan?" _

[I have heard of a clan whose members are unusually durable and know the sealing arts. And they are protected by Seiryuu.]

_"It's been a while since I've heard of Seiryuu. What's your name?" _

[Sorry... I can't even remember my name.]

_"I understand." Crimson sighed as he pulled up an ofuda and quickly slapped it on the ghost's ethereal head and said, "Rest in peace." as the ghost turned into a blue wisp and was incinerated. _

Rainbow Dash and the CMC gave confused looks at the unicorn stallion as he solemnly stared and turned around.

_"I thought there weren't any ghosts in Equestria, Rainbow Dash." _

"There aren't. C'mon, do your fox magic or something."

Crimson sighed and rolled his eyes, then his horn burst in flames and the newly remodeled house was engulfed in a white light, nearly blinding everyone else. When the light cleared, it resembled a dojo, complete with smooth wooden floor, and everything else that came with. Applebloom sighed in dismay and turned around when she noticed something in her flank. It appeared to be a green apple behind a hammer and nail crossed together.

"Applebloom... your cutie mark." Sweetie Belle's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates as she gasped. . "It's... it's... finally here!"

"It is!?" The lemon filly looked at her flank and spun around, making sure that it was real, then turned to her friends. "But... what about you two? You guys haven't gotten yours yet."

_"One down, two to go." Crimson thought, then gave a flat look and smiled at the youngest Apple sibling. "I also remembered to get a housing permit while I'm here. So, how do you feel?" _

"I should be happy, but..." Applebloom hung her head and frowned.

"What's wrong, Applebloom?" Scootaloo asked. "Sweetie Belle and I are happy for you."

"It's just that... I finally got mine from restoring this house, but you guys haven't obtained yours yet." The lemon filly sighed.

"Don't worry about it, Applebloom. Me and everypony else'll get ours. In fact, you're the first one out of all of us to get a cutie mark." The white unicorn filly smiled. "I mean, that's why we formed the Cutie Mark Crusaders."

"Yeah. Even though we're blank flanks now, that doesn't mean that we still can't be friends." Scootaloo grinned as she wrapped her left forehoof around the youngest Apple sibling.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders shared a giggle until they noticed Crimson sitting suspisciously doing something; Rainbow Dash tilted her head in confusion over the same thing.

"What are you doing?" Applebloom asked suspisciously.

Crimson was rapidly folding something as he created a big red button and an origami gift box. He was having a lot of fun as he "lovingly" put the big red button inside the gift box. Then he summoned a brush and inkwell from his hammerspace along with a piece of paper and wrote on it. Unsurprisingly enough, it was in Neighponese and was addressed to somepony named "Solaris".

_"Oh, this thing? Hehe... it's a surprise." The unicorn stallion chuckled evilly while shuffling his hooves like a stereotypical evil person._

"What are those weird drawings on your letter, Crimson?" Sweetie Belle inquired. "Can't you write in Poniese?"

_The unicorn stallion gave a confused look at the two and answered, "First and foremost, it's called a foreign language. Second of all, I can't write in English... namely, Poniese is what everyone calls it." _

"Can't you write in pencil?"

_"When it comes to writing, I'm an old-fashioned stallion." Crimson grinned. _

"How old are you again?" Rainbow Dash asked.

_"What am I, a pedophile!?" The unicorn stallion retorted. "No, wait, don't answer that!" _

Everypony left the newly restored temporary Hayashi residence and went their separate ways. (Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle may have finally had a hint thanks to what Twilight and Cheerilee said a year ago.) Crimson just finished wrapping his gift and made the final touches by wrapping the ribbon around the gift box and made sure it looked like it was written by Twilight before magically rolling up the paper and sealing it with a red ribbon. He then dropped them at the post office before meeting up with Scarlet.

* * *

The next day...

Scarlet "Misaki" Prower-Watanabe, adopted daughter of Akira Hayashi and niece of Daisuke "Nazou" Hayashi. Her first day ended with a mild food poisoning from the baked bads. Today, she's taking on the Canterlot mail route, filling in for somepony named Ditzy Doo as a part-time mailmare. (Even though she's actually a nurse.)

Then she remembered to put on her grey saddlebag and hat as she left her room in the newly built dojo located a short distance away from Ponyville. Scarlet trotted out of her temporary house and set off for the post office. When she entered, she was immediately bombarded with a plethora of letters and a random gift box. The pegasus mare noticed that one of them was addressed to somepony named "Shining Armor" and the other to "Prince Solaris."

"Soh-lah-ris, huh?" The pegasus mare wondered as she asked the supervisor.

"Wait a minute... Solaris... Solaris..." The mere thought of it made the blue stallion gulp and his face paled.

"What's wrong?"

"Scarlet, was it?" The supervisor chuckled nervously. "Prince Solaris... is Princess Celestia."

"Who's Princess Celestia?" Scarlet asked innocently.

Everypony in the post office immediately dropped their stuff and stared at the golden yellow mare, who tilted her head in confusion.

"Scarlet... you don't know who Princess Celestia is!?" The supervisor's face paled at the response and answered. "Princess Celestia's one of the co-rulers of Equestria, and it IS A very big deal if there's mail addressed to her."

"Yeah. Even the dragons know who she is." Ditzy Doo added. "Whatever it is you're delivering for her, be careful."

"S-sure..." The golden yellow redhead chuckled nervously. "What's she like?"

"I haven't personally met her per se... but Twilight Sparkle is her protege and Shining Armor is the Captain of the Royal Guard." The blue stallion explained. "And they're both Element Bearers."

Scarlet made a mental note to ask the librarian and/or Rainbow Dash about that, then picked up her packages and put them into her saddlebag. Then she saluted, put on her flight goggles and dashed off for Canterlot, while Ditzy Doo set off towards Sugarcube Corner for muffins.

* * *

Meanwhile, Crimson Edge yawned as he stretched his forehooves and looked at his younger niece, sleeping peacefully in crib. Come to think of it, she's been sleeping nonstop for four days now, and he had enough hours despite being awake for a week. When he trotted downstairs to the main dojo, there was a note on the table that said,

[Won't be back until later today due to work.

Love, Misaki.

PS. Here's 100 bits. How I managed to convert all the Rings that you saved up in Mobius into Equestrian bits is a complete mystery. Oh, and you agreed to it, too.]

The unicorn stallion picked up the sack of bits and returned upstairs to take Izumi with him, seeing as he can't really leave a foal... all alone... on her own. Crimson opened the door, only to have two pair of golden eyes stare straight at his face.

_"Can I help... you?" Crimson asked. _

"Hey, Crimson. Mail for you." Ditzy Doo promptly opened her saddlebag and gave a muffin and a letter to the unicorn stallion before smiling and trotting away with her daughter.

Crimson Edge slowly munched on the muffin as he held the letter with his magic and it went on like this:

[Dear Nazou,

If you're reading this, then it is clear that Nanaki's other half is around somewhere. Everyone has been wondering about my history with Princess Celestia.

Well, for starters, it's not in that sense. But I do know that it feels very much like I have known her almost like an old friend, and the extent of that friendship,

I'm not too sure. That, and she seemed strangely happy to see me again. It was weird how I suddenly remembered her name just before I passed out in the

First TM Gate, and how she knew my name even though we've met two days ago. I... I'm starting to remember what happened to me those four years before

waking up in Mobius. I remember meeting Celestia's mother, Solar Flare, my former mentor two years before that fateful day. The first time I met Celestia was

when I crossed the barrier separating her world from mine after I recovered from my coma, while my second time was when I nearly died from going berserk.

That pink alicorn, Cadence, was it? I thought I saw someone familiar... in fact, she reminds me of a certain someone. The chances of two beings with the same

aura is astronomical, and I would be surprised if that happened. About my injuries, I'm doing my best not to do much. It's that time of year again, where our

demonic powers are disabled once a month.

Sincerely,

Akira.

PS. Izumi's a heavy sleeper. Try to wake her up every now and then.]

_"Okay..." Crimson gave a confused look as he deposited the letter in his hammerspace and shrugged his shoulders. _

* * *

_**Meanwhile...**_

"So, this is Canterlot..." Scarlet mused to herself as she spent most of the morning delivering mail to random ponies. "I guess this job's not too bad. How Nazou-ojisan is able to obtain money is a complete mystery to me."

The golden yellow mare had an easy time with her job until she heard very loud shouting noises... and the sight of bricks flying towards her general direction. "Must be the barracks", she muttered as she flew towards the voices.

"Tell me we are not using bricks for today's training." Shining Armor groaned and facehoofed at a dark grey unicorn stallion as he watched several others canter in sync.

"Well, what are we going to do with these leftover bricks, Captain Armor?" The dark grey unicorn stallion leered at his superior. "Build with them?"

"Remember the last time..." The older Sparkle rolled his eyes.

"Well, last time involved a lot of frying pans, okay!? We can't always use spears-"

"Thunderbolt, we are ponies. We can't hold swords. And you have to think about the others."

While the two were arguing, Thunderbolt tossed several bricks at the intruder, who dodged right and started descending at a rapid speed. Scarlet rolled left as two bricks flew her way, then was forced to climb a bit as a massive barrage was thrown. She then dove, occasionally dodging bricks every now and then. The pegasus mare accelerated by folding her wings and aimed for the ground, determined to deliver her package. Thunderbolt waited until the intruder was within sight and threw a single brick skyward, hitting the poor mare at point blank.

Scarlet grunted heavily as if her stomach was being punched. Hard. Something suddenly flew towards her eyes and everything blacked out. The next thing she knew she heard several masculine voices.

"Thunderbolt." Shining Armor gave a flat look.

"Yes, Captain Armor?" Thunderbolt asked.

"It is clear that you have an unhealthy obsession with bricks."

"Sorry sir. Oh, look. The little filly's awake." The dark grey stallion's eyes lit up as Scarlet stirred to the sound. "Say anything. Anything, I say!"

"Nnngh... are you... Shining... Armor?" Scarlet asked weakly.

"Yes I am. Hey, wait. What happened to the usual mailpony?" The older Sparkle asked suspisciously.

"Usual mailpony's sick today. So... I'm taking over... for her." The golden yellow mare coughed as the two stallions helped her up. "At least for today. Oh, almost forgot: mail for you."

"What is it this time?"

"It's from... someone named Twilight Sparkle..." She coughed some more. "Endurance training all over again..."

"Thunderbolt. Drop. Bricks. Now." Shining Armor scolded his junior.

"Sorry." Thunderbolt chuckled nervously as the bricks fell onto the ground.

"What's your name?" The white unicorn stallion asked the mare.

"My name's Scarlet." The golden yellow mare grinned as she stood up, her right hoof to her heart.

"I thought I heard you before..." Shining Armor pondered as he paced about, then a eureka moment came up and he presented Crimson's copy of the family photo. "Are you what I think you are?"

"Nope. Yeah, my name's Scarlet, but I don't know who you're talking about." Scarlet quickly answered and chuckled nervously as her eyes darted to and fro. "I hear someone calling me, soo... uhh... bye!" She flew away before he could say anything else. Her opinion of Shining Armor was that he's unusually friendly for someone in the military.

Her thoughts with this experience were,"He lit up when I mentioned Twilight Sparkle. Hrm... note to self: ask the Ponyville librarian. She might know a thing or two and why Shining Armor knows me." and "This is the weirdest part-time job I've ever had."

The golden yellow mare's stomach growled as she flew on through the streets of Canterlot, the rest of her thoughts on whoever Princess Celestia is. Based on everyone's comments back at the post office, she sounds like a powerful pony. While she was contemplating everything, she somehow... tripped on a rock and bumped into a tall white equine figure with sherbet hair and a golden aura that is warm and bright... like the sun itself.

"So... you must be the new mailmare." A calm and motherly voice mused to herself.

"Are... are you Prince... S-solaris?" Scarlet asked.

"That would be my male counterpart, young filly." The white alicorn chuckled to herself. "My name is Princess Celestia."

"M-mail for you, Your Highness." The golden yellow pegasus gulped as she shakily fumbled around her saddlebag and presented the gift box.

"Hmm... it has been a very long time since the last time somepony personally delivered mail to me." Celestia answered. "Are you alright?"

"Me? I-I'm okay." Scarlet stammered and quickly replied. "My name's Scarlet, and I'm not a changeling."

"I can see that you are not, young filly. However, your aura... it tells me that this is not your true form."

"Hah-how do you know?"

"This is the first time that I have seen someone like yourself." The solar alicorn answered.

"I... I would say the same thing, Your Highness." The golden yellow mare nodded.

With that done, Celestia summoned the gift box and noticed a note, and it went on like this:

[Here is a gift from me to you,

- Signed, Anon.]

Upon opening the gift box, it was a big, red button. Celestia looked around to see if there were any traps or secret compartments. But it was only a button. Scarlet gulped one more time as she watched the solar alicorn leer at the button with suspiscion.

"This might as well be the simplest practical joke I have seen in my many years of existence. Since... the 'whoopee' cushion." Celestia rolled her eyes and chuckled.

"Phew." The golden yellow mare gave a relieved sigh. "Good thing it's not a bomb, one thing's for sure."

Unfortunately, the moment she said that, the white alicorn was forcibly transformed into a large white wolf with a sherbet tail. Celestia as a wolf was largely the same, save for her missing mane and that instead of hooves, there were paws. Her equine face was more lupine in appearance, and lost her horn and wings along with her ability of speech. However, her aura and cutie mark are the same and is still able to use magic. In addition, she became able to talk with telepathy, seeing as her normal speech came out as barks, growls, yelps and howling.

* * *

_**Okami Celestia FPV**_

Everything looks the same and sounds the same, but it feels... different. Instead of hooves, they seem to have been changed into something called paws. My muzzle seems to be longer, and I find this slightly amusing.

The next thing that happened was the sight of Scarlet backing away in fear, almost as if she was the one who did this to me. I shook my head in dismay as she left and walked on... hoping to find whoever did this to me and possibly force him or her to turn me back.

* * *

_**Meanwhile in Ponyville...**_

Crimson Edge was howling in laughter at the thought of his prank. He wasn't good with machines like Scarlet or with magic like Twilight, but was fond of pranking random people and/or ponies every now and then. First thing he did was to take Izumi with him in the hopes of waking her up. The unicorn stallion looked proudly at his kid sister's daughter and was about to step out when he was interrupted by a familiar face.

"Oh... ummm hi." Fluttershy bashfully greeted the stallion.

_"What brings you here?" Crimson asked, then thought. "Wait a sec, I'm technically thirty-one, and her human form appears to be around 17-18... Oh man, oh man, I'm dead! Argh!" _

"What's the matter, Crimson?" The pegasus mare inquired with a concerned tone.

_"It's nothing." The unicorn stallion quickly answered. _

"Umm... is she your daughter?"

_"Her?" _

Fluttershy nodded.

_"She's not my daughter." Crimson bluntly replied. _

"No? Oh, I'm sorry..." The butter yellow mare hid behind her hair and shuffled her hooves.

_"You don't need to apologize. She's actually my niece." _

"Is... is she dead?"

_"C'mon, let's walk an' talk." The unicorn stallion chuckled. _

"Umm... okay. That is... if you don't mind." Fluttershy answered.

_"Of course I don't mind!" Crimson rolled his eyes and sighed._

* * *

_**Okami Celestia FPV**_

It was surprising that Cadence is unnerved and cowed by my current appearance. And she did not recognize me at all. We leered at each other for a couple minutes, but when I tried to speak, it came out as deep barking sounds, unnerving her even more. Cadence gave an awkward smile and then frowned as she tried... unsuccessfully to talk to me. Then it hit me: Telepathy. Why not use telepathy to communicate with everypony!?

[Cadence... calm down.]

"Auntie Celestia, is that you?" The pink alicorn asked.

[Of course it's me. I have been turned... into... I do not know the term.] I answered. [But don't worry about me. This won't be too hard.]

Cadence nodded as if I was talking to her normally, and gave a warm smile as she chuckled.

"So... uhh... has Auntie Luna been obsessed with..." Her words trailed off.

[Ever since she was restored to normal, Cadence. Make sure she stays away from that abacus.] I firmly answered, using telepathy, then dashed off towards Ponyville, seeing as nopony would be able to recognize my current form.

* * *

_**Omniscient TPV, Ponyville**_

_"Mmmm... thief are gud muffinsh." Crimson commented between bites. "Wanf sum?" _

"I didn't know you liked muffins." Fluttershy replied as he gave her a muffin.

_"Ever sinf Deefsee Doo introdoofed them. And I've always have penchant for spicy food." The unicorn stallion finished eating his and muffled his belch by covering his hoof. He noticed her PDE and frowned a bit as he blushed. "What's wrong?" _

"Ummm... uhh..." The pegasus mare gulped a bit as she closed her eyes; she could literally hear her heart pounding like crazy. She was about to tell him her feelings when Crimson turned to her with a serious look and frowned.

_"You have a crush on me, don't you, Fluttershy?" Crimson slowly answered with a serious look._

Surprised by the sudden question, the pegasus mare turned a luminescent red and turned away, her eyes hidden by her mane. "How... do you know?" Fluttershy asked.

_"I... I'm sorry if I had to read your mind. I know I'm not supposed to, but..." This time, his eyes were concealed, and the stallion didn't move as hetried to crack a smile, but stuck on a frown. "Fluttershy-kun... there's something you should know about me." _

"Know... about what, Crimson?" The pegasus mare inquired.

_"I noticed how protective I can be with my friends and family. Especially if they happen to be foals." Crimson began. "To oversimplify, Akira and I disregard our own lives for the sake of others. I know you like me... but..." _

"But what?"

_"I'm a fully grown stallion, and you're only a young mare. And you're not the only one who did this." The stallion answered. _

"I'm... not?" Fluttershy gave a confused look.

_"Nope. In fact, a certain pink-maned moon rabbit was infatuated with me, and she was one of the few friends I made since my first awakening." Crimson continued. "I was hoping we could be friends... but not in that sense. But if you want... I'll protect you when you need it the most."_

In response, she hugged the stallion, earning a heartwarming smile from him. Then Crimson made a deadpan look and turned to Fluttershy, prompting her to stop hugging.

* * *

_**Meanwhile, with Okami Celestia... **_

The solar wolf quickly dashed through the streets of Ponyville in search for whoever did this to her. As much as she wanted to laugh about it, she couldn't. Celestia didn't know what her form was and wanted to "congratulate" somepony on the prank. Whoever did this is either brave, stupid or both. What she noticed were a familiar unicorn stallion and pegasus mare walking together. Upon a closer look, it was confirmed to be Crimson Edge and Fluttershy.

* * *

_**With Crimson Edge and Fluttershy...**_

A white lupine figure with a sherbet tail and a familiar cutie mark appeared in front of them. Crimson slowly trotted closer to the vulpine and his face paled.

"What's wrong, Crimson?" The pegasus mare asked.

_"You might want to look in front of you." Crimson gulped, his hooves shaking from the lupine figure's aura. _

"I don't think I've seen something like this before."

_"This is called a wolf, Fluttershy. And for some reason, this wolf looks really familiar..." The unicorn stallion gave a flat look, then gulped upon briefly glancing upon its cutie mark and sherbet tail._

"C-c-crimson?" Fluttershy whimpered.

_"Yeah?" _

"This wolf... looks a lot like Princess Celestia."

[That is because I am Princess Celestia, Fluttershy.] The white wolf answered.

"Huh? Did I just hear a voice in my head?" The pegasus mare wondered.

[Telepathy. I remember a golden yellow pegasus mare delivering mail to me and now this happens.] Okami Celestia replied. [I would have to say that this is a rather strange joke... and at least nopony was hurt. Tell me, who sent it?]

_"That would have to be me, Princess Celestia." Crimson sighed in defeat. "I'm really sorry for turning you into a wolf." _

[I was actually surprised. Did you actually intend to transform me into a wolf as part of your prank?] The white wolf asked.

_"Surprisingly enough, no. I was actually intending the button to do something else, actually." Crimson non-chalantly replied. "But this shouldn't be too hard. I mean, that I learned that being in a different form is harder than I imagined."_

[I see...] Okami Celestia nodded.

Crimson transformed into his half-demon form, immediately surprising Okami Celestia and Fluttershy. He started charging up energy, surrounded by blue illusionary flames until his hands shone a golden aura and quickly slammed them (palms down) into the ground, engulfing Okami Celestia and himself in a white light, suddenly bringing the two to a void lit up only by a golden magical circle. Okami Celestia was reverted back to an alicorn, and her horn shone a golden aura, resonating with his dark red, and an image of a certain alicorn (no, not Cadence or Luna) and a familiar human brunette walking side by side. The brunette smiled as she looked up with joy in her eyes... and everything whited out...

When Nazou opened his eyes, instead of Okami Celestia, was Princess Celestia. Both were completely surprised at the revelation... and the fact that the former is slightly taller than the solar alicorn.

"Crimson Edge... So you ARE half-human after all..." Celestia mused.

_"Agh... what the!? What just happened?" Nazou groaned. _

Fluttershy gasped at all that had happened and was about to faint when the solar alicorn trotted up to her and calmed her down with a gentle stare and a nod; she understood that this wasn't for a personal visit. The pegasus mare smiled at her and left for the Everfree. While all Nazou obtained from this was a headacheand Celestia returned to Canterlot.

"'Tia!? I heard thou were turned into a wolf! Are thou alright!?" The lunar alicorn asked in a state of shock.

"I'm fine now, so no need to worry." Celestia nodded at her younger sister and chuckled.

"I have always wondered where he was."

"The day is not over yet, and I still have work to do." The solar alicorn sighed and shook her head as she trotted back to her throne and watched her sister leave the throne room.

* * *

_**Meanwhile...**_

Scarlet's stomach growled loudly since she calmed down from meeting Princess Celestia for the first time. It didn't help that most restaurants here were really expensive. And she only had 45 bits left from spending the rest on the baked bads the other day. Until the familiar scent drew her in to a donut shop. The donut shop in question was big and she suddenly bumped into a familiar unicorn stallion and pink alicorn couple and gasped, almost fainting from the sight.

"Don't I know you from somewhere?" Shining Armor asked.

"うん。私の爆発のためにすみません。" [Yeah. I'm sorry for my outburst.] Scarlet answered in Neighponese.

"Can you speak Ponese?" The older Sparkle inquired.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know- Wait.. SHINING ARMOR!?" The pegasus mare's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. "What? How?"

"Even though I'm Captain of the Royal Guard, I also have a life too, Scarlet. How come you're still in Canterlot?"

"How the heck do you know me even though we've only met twice!?" Scarlet glared at the older stallion.

"Well, Crimson Edge and 'Kira mentioned you every now and again."

"Huh, so that's Dai-ojisan's second alias..." The pegasus mare thought, then replied. "Do you know Mi Amore Cadenza?"

"That would be me." Cadence gave a calm smile and nodded.

"Oh." The pegasus mare flatly replied.

"On an unrelated note, can you deliver this letter to Twilight?" Cadence smiled as she forked over her donuts and a letter to the younger mare. "And you look like you haven't eaten much."

"Thanks so much, Cadence." Scarlet cried tears of joy and gave a warm smile and joyfully ate the donuts. "Sure."

After a moment of eating, she gave a visible sigh and stood. "Well, I should get back to the post office in Ponyville."

"How did you come to Canterlot?" The pink alicorn asked.

"I flew all the way from Ponyville. Heck, I flew there from Griffon country. It's a four day flight." The golden yellow mare nonchalantly replied.

"Wow... no wonder you were hungry. Anyway, I shouldn't be keeping you, Scarlet. And there should be the train station if you go straight ahead."

The former nodded and looked up at the alicorn, then turned from her and bid her goodbye; the royal couple did the same and the three went their separate ways...

* * *

**_Meanwhile in Ponyville..._**

_"Argh! Where did she go!?" Nazou groaned as he looked around for his younger niece. "Oh, wait. I forgot that foals mature faster than babies... but still! Foals are foals! I can't leave her alone all on her own."_

"Are you looking for someone?" Twilight asked.

_"Yeah. I'm looking for a unicorn foal." _

"Crimson... who's the lucky mare?" The purple mare gave a sly smile.

_"Twilight, if you're thinking that foal's mine, that foal's actually my younger niece." The half-demon deadpanned and shook his head. "I must have lost her near the square." _

_***With Izumi* **_

The advantage of being a unicorn foal is that they mature faster than human babies. Here, Izumi Hayashi, now a unicorn foal, blinked twice while investigating the strange world around her. As she looked around, the dark grey foal stared at the ground beneath. It was rough... and hard. And bumpy.

Izumi tilted her head in confusion as she found herself staring at two pink pillars, then a pair of big blue eyes. She blinked at the sight as she frowned and gave a flat look.

"Where'd you come from?" The voice wondered as she picked up the unicorn foal and allowed her on her back and bounced off...

=Chapter 9 End=

* * *

At least there's slightly more Princess Celestia, but... it turned out to be something else entirely. Luna's harder to do than Celestia if only for her Shakespearean English/Royal Canterlot Voice. The original premise of the chapter was that Princess Celestia's turned into a wolf and was supposed to be focused on her, but... it was minor.


	10. One Direction

**_Alt. Title:Finding what You're Looking For_**

Okay, here's the REAL ages of everyone so far. I would have to assume that Royal Canterlot Wedding takes place during the summer, and the first chapter probably three years after that.

Note:In Akira and Nazou's cases, kitsune years count, too.

*Note:Fluttershy is _**ALWAYS**_ one year older than Pinkie.

Twilight Sparkle:20

Pinkie Pie*:21

Fluttershy:22

Rainbow Dash:22

Rarity:24

Applejack:23

Spike:15

Applebloom:11

Scootaloo:10

Sweetie Belle:11

Shining Armor:27

Cadence:26

Ditzy Doo:25

Granny Smith:90

Gilda:24

Trixie:20

Akira:327 (actual age is 27, but appears to be 24 due to three-year coma)

Nazou/Crimson Edge:431 (appears to be 27)

Scarlet:17

Note:Akira and Nazou are mentally older than Twilight and Shining, but are around the latter's age range.

Misc stuff:Akira and Nazou would be the older equivalents of Twilight and Shining Armor in terms of physical age.

* * *

"Found her yet?" Twilight panted as she fell down on the ground, exhausted.

_"Nope." Crimson shook his head as he breathed heavily and sat on the ground. His ears twitched twice upon hearing someone humming and another cooing. "Huh? Is that... who I think it is!?" _

"Hiya." Pinkie grinned. "Looking for somepony?"

_"Yes! Have you seen a dark grey unicorn foal?" _

"Mean her?" The baker asked as she presented Izumi to the two.

_The unicorn stallion nodded and gave a relieved sigh as he held his younger niece with magic. _

"So... who's the foal's mother?" The librarian asked.

_"Take a wild guess." Crimson bluntly replied. _

"You mean..."

_"You know very well who I'm talking about." _

"Crimsie?" Pinkie asked.

_"Yeah?" _

"You like being vague, don't you?" The baker flatly asked.

_"At least I'm honest about my words." Crimson retorted. _

"Lemme get this straight: You're an uncle!?"

_"Yup." The unicorn stallion nodded. _

"But you look... younger." Pinkie answered.

_"Well, that's what I get for being a half-demon. I age slower than most. Think about it: Cadence isn't immortal, but she ages much slower than most ponies." CE reasoned. "Why do you ask?" _

"Do all humans... have tails like yours?"

_"Humans don't normally have tails. It's just me and my kid sister, that's all." _

"I see..." The baker leered at the older stallion and watched as Izumi levitated herself and landed on her uncle's head.

"Awwww... she's so cute." Twilight grinned as she magically held the foal and stared. Izumi blinked twice and booped the older mare, prompting the latter to blink. "So... um, what's her name?"

_"Izumi. It means fountain or spring in the Neighponese language." Crimson said, then chuckled with the thought of his niece looking up to Twilight and comically freezing her. _

* * *

Meanwhile with Scarlet...

"Where is this again?" The golden yellow mare muttered to herself, then stared at several buildings and sighed deeply. "I took the wrong train, didn't I?"

* * *

Back in Ponyville...

"I noticed you and Akira's family have Neighponese roots." Twilight commented.

_"We do. Didn't Fluttershy mention that she came from a long line of Earth ponies?" Crimson asked. _

"Yeah. Pinkie's having fun with Izumi already." The two unicorns chuckled and watched as the baker bounced about with the foal, then sweatdropped as said foal suddenly ignited the older mare on fire.

Both unicorns gaped at the sight. Crimson gulped, while Twilight gave a shocked look at the foal, who was now floating and giggling cutely... while Pinkie's screaming and panicking at the same time due to her burning mane.

_"Twilight?" The unicorn stallion turned to the purple mare and asked._

"...Yeah?"

_"Can unicorns use elemental magic?"_

* * *

Meanwhile, with the Cutie Mark Crusaders...

Scootaloo watched as Applebloom finished constructing a gigantic wooden ramp, then whistled. Sweetie Belle gaped at the sight, her eyes the size of pinpricks and her mouth wide open as she looked down from the top.

"D-don't you think that this is a bit... high?" The white unicorn filly gulped.

"Ah dun think so." Applebloom shook her head.

"What's the plan?" The gamboge pegasus asked.

"Well, lemme explain with this here chart." The lemon Earth pony filly began as she looked down at a piece of paper and started explaining. "First off, you're gonna gain speed by riding down this ramp. Next-"

"Wait, how is this gonna help us get our cutie mar-" Scootaloo was about to counter when a twinkle was seen in the sky and a thunderous crash was heard. Concerned about whatever fell, the Crusaders jumped down and gasped. They know this mare. To a certain extent.

"Look, it's Scarlet!" The youngest Apple sibling exclaimed as she galloped to the older mare and shook her violently. "Wake up! Wake up!"

"Wuh? Applebloom? Scootaloo? Sweetie Belle?" Scarlet mused to herself. "Where... the heck am I?"

"Yer in Ponyville. Didja hit yer head?"

"Think so. Ngh... what are you doing?" The golden yellow mare inquired while clutching her head with her forehoof.

"We're trying to get cutie marks for tricks." Scootaloo grinned. "Right, Sweetie Belle?"

"Y-yeah. I don't know what's worse: doing this... or singing in front of everypony in Ponyville." Sweetie Belle paled at the thought.

"Stage fright?" Scarlet deadpanned.

"What are y'all doin here?" A southern drawl interrupted.

"Applejack!?" The CMC exclaimed.

The Stetson-wearing pony trotted over with a calm look and stared at the Crusaders, then at the new pony. "Who would you be? Mah name's Applejack."

"Scarlet."

"Hmm... ah dun think ahve seen yah before, sugahcube." Applejack commented. "Where ya from?"

"I know I'm not from around here, but... I'm not supposed to just tell anyone else that I'm Mobian." The golden yellow mare thought. "なんてこった！これは本当にイライラさ！" [Argh! This is really frustrating!]

"Yer Crimson's niece, arent' ya?" The middle Apple sibling guessed. "An' ah sorta knew that 'Kira had a daughter."

"How do you know?" Scarlet asked.

"Well, fer starters, I remember Crimson an' 'Kira mentionin' this a couple times before. An' ah know from memory that yer 'round 'Twi's age." Applejack explained. "An' ah also heard about the baked bads you ate th' other day. An' if yer 'round 'Twi's age, yah dun hafta be all formal 'roun us. That, an' ahm the Element of Honesty."

"I'm assuming that... you're one of the Elements of Harmony? Not that I would know, but..." The golden yellow mare frowned.

"Yah look like an older Applebloom 'cept with wings, Scarlet."

"We... do?" Applebloom and Scarlet pointed to each other with perplexed looks.

"Yeah. You both look alike, that's all. If you didn't have wings, the both of you would be clones, I think?" Sweetie Belle commented.

"Suuure..." Scarlet answered suspisciouly as she deadpanned. "Well, best report back to the post office."

"Leavin' already?" Applejack inquired. "Well, come back anytime, 'hear?"

"I will." The golden yellow mare nodded and galloped towards Ponyville...

* * *

Back in Ponyville...

"I like her, Crimsie. She reminds me of Pound and Pumpkin Cake." Pinkie grinned. "I noticed that she prefers to be on the air than on the ground."

_"Huh... do most unicorn foals float?" Crimson asked. _

"Nope. But I do know that foals here are able to fly and use magic as soon as they're born. It was really hard the first time I foalsat for the Cake's twins." The baker answered.

_"I see." He thought of Cadence's aura... _

"What 'cha thinkin 'bout, Crimsie?" Pinkie inquired.

_"Cadence... reminds me of a certain someone." The unicorn stallion bluntly replied. _

"Who?"

_"The chances of a reincarnation having the same aura as a reincarnee is astronomical. It's possible for humans to reincarnate into different people so that they are entirely different, but the chances of becoming non-human..." Crimson muttered to himself. "Hrm... if it happens..." _

"Are you okay, Crimson?" Twilight asked as she turned to the stallion.

_"Huh?" His thought now interrupted, Crimson turns to the purple mare and answered. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me." _

"You were deep in thought about something."

_"I was? Oh, it's nothing." The unicorn stallion shook his head as he bumped into Scarlet. _

It wasn't as much as awkward, but the golden yellow mare rubbed the back of her head and groaned a bit. Crimson took this moment to lend a hoof and help her up. The first thing he did was ask how work went.

"It was weird. One of my deliveries was with someone named Shining Armor." Scarlet answered.

_"Shining Armor, huh? Captain of the Royal Guard and happily married to Princess Cadence?" Crimson asked. _

"That's the one." The golden yellow mare nodded.

_"Heh, heh... Misaki, I would like you to meet someone." The unicorn stallion grinned and turned to Twilight. _

"Hi. My name's Twilight Sparkle." Twilight introduced herself.

"Mine's Scarlet. Nice to meet you." Scarlet nodded as she shook hooves with the purple mare.

Both mares turned to the sound of giggling and to the sight of a floating foal, engulfed in a white aura. Crimson chuckled to himself and was about to start trotting away when a brick came flying out of nowhere and hit him straight in the eyes, and everything whited out...

* * *

"Nazou-ojisan?"

"Wauuugh..."

"Are you alright?"

Crimson stirred to the sounds of feminine voices and woke up to the sight of a golden yellow and purple shape. The shapes finally sharpened to a pair of sky blue and purple eyes, then extended to the clear blue Equestrian sky.

"Phew. I thought he wouldn't recover from something like that." Twilight sighed with relief.

_"Misaki? Twilight? Why are you still here?" Crimson murmured to the mares as he rubbed his head with his hooves and thought, "I have a strange feelilng these eggheads will give me a splitting headache soon..."_

"I don't know who threw that brick, but whoever it is, he or she has a problem with you, ojisan." Scarlet replied with a worried look as she helped her uncle up.

_"Oooh, want to visit the liebery?" The unicorn stallion asked. _

"It's pronounced 'li-brary', not 'lie-berry', Crimson." Twilight corrected.

Crimson rolled his eyes as he followed the mares into Golden Oaks Library. He didn't set hoof on it since the second chapter, and the moment they entered, Scarlet immediately fell in love with the library and realized that Twilight IS the librarian... which unfortunately made the stallion realize that he is in the presence of TWO eggheads (Rainbow Dash's idea of an egghead is a bookworm) and tried not to think about it. He was about to leave when a green book with a white trim came within his view. Upon summoning it, the cover read, "Burning Hearts Volume 1: Longing For Absolution."

_"Wonder what this is about?" Crimson wondered to himself as he opened the first page. Upon reading a couple pages, he blushed heavily and realized that this is a good quality romance novel and that he didn't have a girlfriend. Or in this case, marefriend. He bemoaned the fact that most of his crushes are under 18 and that they are directed at him of all people! _

"What are you reading?" Spike asked, immediately making the stallion jump and turn to the young dragon. _"I didn't do anything, I swear!" The stallion quickly screamed as he looked around furtively. _

"Relax... Wait, you found the Burning Hearts series?" The dragon inquired.

_"What's the premise of this series, Spike-kun?" Crimson asked. _

"I haven't read the entire thing, but it's about a human reincarnated into an alicorn mare falling in love with a pegasus stallion." Spike chuckled. "Personally, it's not my kind of thing, but every now and then, Twilight would read this when she's not studying or reading Daring Do."

_"Something tells me Daring Do reminds me of a certain treasure-hunting archaeologist I read about a long time ago..." The stallion thought. "Most of the literature here's highly reminescent of titles written by humans." _

Spike groaned upon looking up at a floating unicorn foal cutely gnawing on one of his head spines as he crossed his arms and said sarcastically, "This is going to be fun."

_"Spike-kun... what's going to be fun?" Crimson inquired as he put down the book. _

"Oh, nothing. Twilight and that golden yellow mare are having fun discussing the finer points of magic and physics."

_"I see you have met my niece, Misaki. Everyone else calls her Scarlet, though." The stallion replied. "She and her birth brother, Miles are gifted when it comes to technobabble." _

"Techno...babble?"

_"A headache that is much worse than brain freeze." Crimson answered and thought, "The last thing I want is to have Twilight-kun and Misaki-kun meeting up with Tails for a science-based discussion. It's already enough that the two can talk technobabble normally, but..."_

"Umm... can you get her off me? She's drooling on my head spines." Spike deadpanned.

_"Sure." The older stallion nodded as he carefully and magically pried Izumi off the dragon, and chuckled to himself as he shook his head, smiling. _

Crimson returned to the book he was reading earlier. As he continued, the stallion's heart was beating so loudly that when Twilight and Scarlet returned from the basement, both of them assumed at first that Spike was playing drums... except that they didn't own any musical instruments.

"I had no idea you regarded Princess Celestia that way, Twilight." Scarlet wondered. "Almost as if... she's a second mother to you."

"That... is true. I've been meaning to ask you something." The purple unicorn replied.

"Yeah?"

"Those golden bracelets on 'Kira's wrists... what are they? And why did she give me this ring?" Twilight showed the golden yellow mare the small ring worn on her neck.

"Those golden bracelets... are actually limiters."

"Limiters? Of what?" The librarian inquired.

_"When she removes her limiters..."_ _Crimson cleared his throat, attracting attention from the two mares. "She becomes even more powerful the moment she takes 'em off. However, Akira can't stay without 'em for long."_

"Why not?"

_"Well, for starters, she's more likely to collapse from extreme exhaustion. And it-" _

Before he could finish anything, a loud roar was heard, immediately surprising everyone in the library. Some books fell, Peewee screeched with fear and everypony lost their balance and fell onto the floor.

_"みんな大丈夫？" [Everyone okay?] Crimson called. _

"私たちは大丈夫だ！" [We're okay!] Scarlet nodded as she regained her balance and helped Twilight up. "What was that!?"

"That sounded a lot like an Ursa Major..." Twilight gulped. "It was hard enough trying to calm down an Ursa Minor."

The unicorn stallion correctly guessed that they were both bears, but didn't expect them to be living constellations. Everyone ran out of the library and galloped towards the source.

_**Ponyville Outskirts, Everfree Forest...**_

When the three entered the Everfree, Crimson found himself back to his half-human form the moment he stepped hoof. His ears twitched upon hearing a cracking sound, but it turned out to be a snapped twig on the ground. After walking a considerable distance with the mares, he heard two faint screams then a loud roar and stopped walking. Two steps more and he heard a third. Nazou simply faced the direction of where the screaming came from and his eyes hardened. As his ears twitched, he picked up the mares like he did with Applejack and Rainbow Dash in chapter 6 and immediately bolted towards that direction.

_***With Rainbow Dash, Applejack and the Cutie Mark Crusaders***_

The Ursa Major roared, scaring the Crusaders even more as Rainbow Dash was tossed aside while protecting the three fillies. It was bad enough that an Ursa Minor ravaged Ponyville, but confronting an Ursa Major!? Even I can't imagine myself facing something that big. Okay, enough with the fourth wall! We has three fillies to save.

"Ah never knew ah would see the day an Ursa Major would appear." Applejack mused to herself, as she struggled to stand up. She winced as the massive star bear swiped at her face, surprisingly not scarred, but still hurt. Before she collapsed, she turned to the Crusaders and told them to run... all with a weak smile before flying backwards from the next attack.

The lemon filly cried out for her older sister as the massive bear tossed her aside and was about to tear said mare apart when a rock was tossed towards the Ursa Major, enraging it even moreso and guaranteeing a world of hurt if not for Twilight, Scarlet and... whoever that strange thing is.

_"だからそれはおおぐま座のです..." [So that's an Ursa Major...] The figure wondered as he stared at the bear, then looked down at the Crusaders. "心配しないで、それは大丈夫でしょう。" [Don't worry. It will be alright.] _

"Twilight... who's he?" Sweetie Belle piped up. "What happened to Crimson Edge?"

"I'll explain everything as soon as we get everypony out of here." The librarian answered.

Applebloom and Scootaloo then proceeded to drag Applejack and Rainbow Dash to safety, with a lot of effort and difficulty had not Twilight and Scarlet helped. Then the Ursa Major roared at the strange creature, out of complete rage and desire to retrieve its cub. The strange creature chuckled as he then disappeared as soon as the massive purple star bear swiped at him.

What happened after was that the bipedal creature reappeared behind the star bear, assaulting her with a series of punches and kicks that ended with said creature summoning a long red and yellow hammer and hit the Ursa Major with half of his strength, forcing the star bear into unconsciousness, crashing down onto the ground with a resounding crack that sounded very much like a fallen tree.

The creature then walked towards the mares and said in Poniese, _"We only have so much time until the Ursa Major wakes up." _Twilight looked up at the creature and simply shook her head.

Later, in Sweet Apple Acres...

"Wuh? What... happened tah me?" Applejack wondered as she rubbed her head with her hooves. Instinctively, she reached for her hat, but it wasn't there.

_"Take it easy. You were almost torn apart by an Ursa Major." The voice chuckled as he took off the Stetson and muttered something about it being able to fit his head and gave it back to the mare. _

Applebloom came in the room and immediately hugged her older sister, prompting Crimson to back off and smile at the sisterly moment. "Ah thought you weren't gonna wake up."

"Well, dun worry yerself, sugahcube. Ah know ah member tryin' tah bring you three to safety, but... the rest's blank." The middle Apple sibling replied. "Anyway, how'd yah get me in heah?"

_"Oh, your grandmother and older brother let me in your house. They're nice ponies. But Granny Smith, well, let's just say that we could be napping buddies." Crimson grinned to the sisters. __"I have a niece to take care of, so see ya." _

**_Meanwhile, with Twilight and Scarlet... _**

"You want to borrow the "Burning Hearts" series, "Pony Wars", "Technology, Medicine and Magic" and "Introduction to Equine Anatomy?" Twilight clarified as she raised an eyebrow. "Is a certain someone hopeless in love?"

"First of all, everyone in my family's straight. Second of all, I need to learn all I can to help in the hospital. Besides, my medical expertise is limited to humans, Mobians and machines." Scarlet answered as the libarian magically put the books on her saddlebag. "And I thought all librarians were old."

"It DOES make a lot of sense, seeing as I'm one of the youngest librarians in existence." The purple mare chuckled to herself, then shook her head and replied in a serious tone. "I don't understand who would have the nerve to even wake up an Ursa Major. Whoever it is... must have some kind of motive."

"I better go. It's almost dark." The golden yellow mare frowned.

"Alright. But... you don't have to be too serious around us, Scarlet. I'm not THAT old."

"Sure..." Scarlet nodded as she took the heavy saddlepack and left the library.

* * *

Crimson was so exhausted that after plopping his younger niece in a crib and making sure his older niece was alright, he fell onto his bed and immediately drifted off to sleep.

One week has passed, and all the leaves fell, ushering a warm winter filled with snow, snow and more snow. The dojo felt empty. There wasn't anyone save for Crimson and his nieces. (He knew that she wouldn't do this unless something horrible has happened to her. In fact, Akira has changed a lot the last two years from an angry jerk to a protective mother of four. The deaths of her late sister and husband had a lot to do with this and strongly affected the half-human woman.)

A loud knock was heard, waking Scarlet up. She trotted downstairs, yawning while doing so and opened the door to find the Crusaders and Spike waiting.

"Huh? Isn't it a bit early for visitors?" The golden yellow mare mused to herself.

"Nope. Hey, is Crimson alright?" Spike asked.

"He's exhausted. Come in, I'll make some cocoa for you." Scarlet motioned for the four to come in.

Spike and the CMC were completely taken by surprise by the large hall and the smooth floors. Applebloom's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates as she followed the golden yellow mare into the dining room, and sat down on the floor and waited for a couple minutes until Scarlet returned with four cups of hot chocolate. The three fillies (and dragon) then immediately began to drink and sigh in relief.

"Mmm... This is good hot chocolate." Scootaloo commented. "How'd you make it?"

"Tea." Scarlet simply replied. "So... what brings you four here?"

"Ah was plannin' tah go back tah Sweet Apple Acres while Sweetie Belle an' Spike were goin home." Applebloom explained. "Then Scootaloo was gonna go back tah the orphanage an' well... we couldn't really see much outside and here we are, ah guess."

"Alright, I'll let you stay in here... at least until the blizzard clears. Let me guess, now that Applebloom has her cutie mark, what about you two? Are you gonna try to become martial artists again?" The golden mare calmly answered as she tried unsuccessfully to hold her cup with one hoof, shaking her head in frustration while groaning quietly.

Spike and Sweetie Belle laughed at the older mare's expense, the the dragon asked, "Do you have any gemstones?"

"Not... that I would know. Nazou-ojisan has an intense obsession with onions."

"Onions?" The purple dragon clarified.

"Onions. And for some weird reason, poison joke." Scarlet shook her head and sighed. "He's had a strong resistance against poisonous plants. Except foxglove. Uncle Crimson tried to eat foxglove, but he got sick and yeah, that's what he gets for eating that."

Spike noticed that the architecture of the house was completely different from everywhere else in Ponyville. The doors didn't swing open (with the exception of the main door, of course) but had to be slid open. And the floors were unusually smooth. In fact, this house bore closer resemblance to a dojo than a cottage; the design came out of something from Scootaloo's Neighponese comics. (ok, stop it, this is heavy gratuitous Japanese. But then again... Akira and Crimson/Nazou are Japanese.) Heck, if this was a dojo, then where's the training clothes!? Those were his thoughts as he soaked in the surroundings around him. Even stranger was that the sign on top of the door was in a different language from what he was used to. (For some reason, the translation spell only applies to the spoken language, not the written language.) It looked more like runes than letters.

The sound of hoofsteps echoed the hallway as silence filled the room. A familiar stallion opened the sliding doors and stopped, giving a groggy stare at the Crusaders and the dragon.

"Up already?" Scarlet stared at her uncle.

His ears twitched and his eyes slowly opened. Crimson rubbed his eyes and yawned again. Upon hearing his niece's question, he mumbled something and snorted a bit. He nodded a little as he trotted to the table and drank the hot cup of hot chocolate.

_"Oh... what brings you here?" The stallion asked Spike. _

"Errands for Twilight." The dragon quickly answered. "And Scarlet invited us to stay here... at least until the blizzard clears."

_"Same reason for the Crusaders?" _

"Yup. Wait... yah look tired, Crimson." Applebloom frowned. "Are yah okay?"

_"Huh? Yeah." The stallion smiled. "Let me guess, an intense blizzard?"_

Everyone nodded. The unicorn stallion sighed deeply and trotted towards the main door, motioning for everyone to follow. Upon opening the door, there was a massive wall of ice blocking the way. He stared at the wall and leered at it, then quickly shut the door after becoming covered in snow and shaking it off, then burning the snow away with his flames.

_"We're stuck." Crimson flatly stated. "And the snow looks too thick to melt... for now, at least."_

"You mean to say..." Sweetie Belle gulped.

_"Unfortunately, so. This is an intense blizzard, after all." The stallion nodded. _

"We might as well do SOMETHING until the snow melts somewhat." Applebloom sighed. "Come tah think of it, yer house looks like one a them training places."

_"Do you mean like a dojo?" _

"Yeah. Like one of- Nevermind." The bow-toting filly sighed. "What happened to that... two-legged thing? Did it disappear?"

_"I wonder if I should just tell Applebloom about this." Crimson thought. "I shouldn't expect everyone to just trust a random stranger and-" _

The Crusaders noticed that he was lost in his thoughts, and decided not to press him any further.

"Wouldn't it be nice... if you can teleport us out of here?" Spike wondered.

_"Well, let's see if we can do that, shall we, my draconian friend?" Crimson entered a charging pose and opened the door. He sighed deeply, closed his eyes and screamed angrily, a torrent of flame unleashed from his mouth. The first time he did this was sometime after defeating an old enemy named Pyros, one of the servants of the newly resurrected Queen Beryl, aka, the "red-headed old hag". _

Everyone literally fell backwards on their butts and froze with widened eyes as the flames quickly melted the thick snow, extending to a large area around the dojo. When the flames died down, the house was surprisingly intact and not burned to cinders despite being made of wood. Spike's mouth was wide open with complete shock and all he thought was, "I'm definitely convinced that he comes from a family of arsonists. Is there anything else he's hiding!?"

_"I heard every word you said, Spike." The unicorn stallion panted without even looking at the dragon or the fillies. "Oh, come on. It's not like I'm hiding anything else, right? That, and there IS a reason why I rarely use my flames. Oh, and you consider Twilight to be family." _

"HEY!" Spike groaned and crossed his arms in slight annoyance and silently grumbled to himself. "How does he know that?"

_"Shadow and Maria." _

"What was that?" The dragon asked.

_"I wasn't around for that, but a certain hedgehog feels the same way towards his 'older sister'." The stallion gave a light chuckle and replied with a sigh. "If love can transcend time and space, friendships can too. I've made many friends in my travels, but it feels like I've outlived 'em all. In a way, love is an extension of friendship." _

"That was profound. How do you know about this mushy stuff? Did you have a marefriend?" Sweetie Belle smiled.

_"Me? A girlfriend?" Crimson turned to the white filly. "Pfft! As if." _

"You don't have one? Why not!?"

_"I don't have one yet." _

"Why not?" Scootaloo raised an eyebrow as she helped her friends up.

_"Do you really want to know?" The stallion deadpanned. "Really!?"_

Everyone stared. Crimson sighed and buried his face in his hooves for a moment. There is so much he can tell little kids before they become traumatized with the revelation. The mere memory of friends long gone and his missing mother brought him close to tears. His father sacrificed himself so that he and his mother can live. Then his mother disappeared after giving birth to his younger sister. Poor Crimson had to live life on his own, wandering the country. He was sealed away twice, increasing his lifespan considerably, but at the same time robbing him of his physical body for who knows how long.

The unicorn stallion had to sacrifice his real name to lock away an eldetrich spirit the first time, and was forced to use his body to do the same the second time. It was thanks to the Chaos Emeralds that he gained a new body to inhabit, at the cost of his sister and brother-in-law. He lost the friends he made, the family he gained (save for his sister and her children) and his body.

Crimson slowly trotted out of the dojo, his equine body engulfing in flames as he stood on his hind hooves... all while looking down having a concealed face. _[Hooves turned into hands and bare feet; his crimson coat turned into a green kosode and a deep red hakama; His single mahogany tail divided into four white-tipped brush-shaped ones and his face became more human-like (namely, slightly flat.) On the right side of his cheek were two red fang-marks and his head gained a pair of vulpine ears. (His skin tone is slightly lighter than his younger sister's though.) However, his blue eyes stayed the same. But instead of mahogany hair, it turned into a shade of brown that is closer to milk chocolate.]_

He took a deep breath, hunched over, closed his eyes and gave a long and powerful rage-filled scream that unleashed a large torrent of flame that melted the snow at a moderate pace. His tails spun until they resembled propellers, fueling his bottled up anger; at the same time, it was loud enough that Cloudsdale ponies could hear it and Apploosa ponies could feel the rage.

* * *

Pinkie Pie was painting the fourth wall again using... crayons when the ground beneath her shook. She lost her focus and her balance, then fell over as it intensified. The Cakes were doing their best to keep their inventory intact and foals calm.

"W-w-w-what the hay is haaaaappening here!?" The party mare exclaimed.

"I-I-I don't know! But I don't want any of the cakes to fall over!" Mr. Cake shouted over the sound of Pound and Pumpkin Cake crying loudly.

"Waaaah!" Pinkie put up her hooves skyward, and shouted, "Why are you doing this, author!? Why!?"

* * *

Big Macintosh was clearing the snow around the barn when the ground rumbled violently and all of Sweet Apple Acres shook. Granny Smith ran out of the house and yelled, "It's like the lahnslahde all ovah agin! Run fer yer lives, whippersnappers!"

"Eeyup." The red stallion slowly nodded as he grabbed his grandmother and started running.

"Consarnit! What in tar-" Applejack screamed as she quickly fell over to the ground, her hat a hoof's distance away from her body. She could only think of Applebloom's safety at this point.

* * *

Rainbow Dash was reading the latest installment of Daring Doo when a rage-filled roar pierced the skies, forcing her to flinch, drop her book and cover her ears. She saw that her cloud house is still intact, but her ears won't be if this continues.

* * *

Rarity was humming along as she was sewing the fabric together with her sewing machine when the ground beneath her rumbled and a loud roar was heard. She stopped sewing and watched as a massive torrent of blue flames melted the snow and immediately felt a hot sensation. Almost as if... everything around her was slowly burning and her body melted in a seemingly painful manner. (If you ARE a marshmallow pony, then I'm sorry if I, the author melted you. Imma gonna make sure you won't be ashes by the end, though.)*

* * *

"Easy... steady now..." Twilight licked her lips as she squinted at the beaker, carefully pouring a vial of orange liquid onto a big one with green liquid.

The contents of the beakers sloshed about, then the glass shatterd as a loud roar filled the laboratory; the purple mare screamed as the green liquid fell on her head and an asplosion filled the basement...

* * *

It was a relatively calm winter for the eternally timid pegasus mare that is Fluttershy as she finished feeding the chickens... with feed. Everything was alright... until the ground beneath her shook violently followed by a loud roar. The chicken clucked furiously and panicked and all the animals cowered in fear as their friend lost her balance and fell, tripping over a boulder.

She eeped at the sound and whimpered at whatever made that sound.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Canterlot...

Princess Luna was surprisingly enough, NOT with her abacus doing something else when the palace shook violently. Even moreso than when she bucked Crimson the other day. The earthquake that she made... was a rather weak one. But this one... it is much stronger than the one she made! Then again, Equestria has never encountered earthquakes before. And most of them seemed stable enough (ooh horse pun) to withstand a weak one.

The lunar alicorn managed to regain her balance and fly to the sky after recovering her sock collection from the floor.

* * *

Princess Celestia is back to dealing with the bane of those in power: paperwork. It is hard being immortal. Or is it one thousand eight hundred. Whatever the case, the moment she was about to start clearing the last page of paper for the third stack; the ground rumbled violently, immediately taking her by surprise and having all her prior stacks of paperwork crashing down. If it wasn't for the fact that she was able to use her magic to hold everything at once, it would have taken longer to fill the paperwork.

"This is the second earthquake this month! I have no choice but to confront two certain ponies for this." The solar alicorn thought with hardened eyes. "I quickly forget that alicorns also have the qualities of Earth ponies. "

* * *

Shining Armor was done with his shift and proceeded to trot home when the ground beneath him shook, prompting everypony to panic and run and fall on the ground. (If you ask, the sun's still up, mind you.) Anyway, he galloped home and found the door closed, so he bucked it and found all the rooms to be empty. Then he galloped outside and tripped.

* * *

Back in Ponyville...

As soon as Nazou stopped, he panted heavily and sat down, clutching his heart. His eyes at the apparent destruction he did. Sure that all of Ponyville was cleared of snow, but he came close to levelling it then burning the small town to ashes.

"NAZOU!"

Everyone's flinched at the sound of his real name. Said half-demon knew that voice. Scarlet looked up. Of the Mane Six, only one of them knew his real name.

"What's your big idea, trying to raze Ponyville to the ground!?" The familiar voice said with anger in her voice as she slapped the half-human.

_"I did what now?" The half-demon slowly replied. _

"I saw what you did. And I'm even more convinced that you come from-" Rainbow Dash leered.

"A family of arsonists?" Spike finished for her.

_"Me? Arson? Rainbow Dash, are you hearing yourself?" Nazou inquired. _

The cyan pegasus glared at him and continued, "You also came close to causing... what do you call it when the ground shakes?"

_"Earthquakes. We had a lot of them in the past." _

"Oh, right. In fact, both Ponyville and Canterlot had those!"

_"You mean to say that I did that? I caused an earthquake and almost burned Ponyville?" _

"Yeah! And you almost made ME deaf!" The cyan pegasus growled and left, muttering. "No thanks to you, I'll be hearing your screaming for a while."

"I better check on Twilight." Spike gave a deadpan stare and left with the Crusaders. (Scarlet went back in if only to recover from the sound of her uncle's screaming.)

As Nazou started walking towards Ponyville, he noticed that they're still intact. But he sensed the fear in ponies. This fear he knew... too well. He heard that Ponyvillians are used to weird things. Not destruction. Well, at least most of the snow's melted.

Much later...

_"I said I was sorry!" Nazou groaned as Twilight growled at him. He found himself staring down at a purple vixen with a violet tail and two-tone streaks. "Okay, fine! It was my fault that I caused an earthquake which led to Carousel Boutique being almost on fire, Rainbow Dash being almost deaf in both ears, and extended to Canterlot. And a fire that thankfully didn't burn anyone but-"  
_

Fox! Twilight glared. Her purple eyes burned with an almost murderous look had not Rarity interfered and separated the two. (On her part, trying to lift a human is hard.)

"Both of you, stop it, right now!" The white unicorn glared at the two, especially at her friend.

_"Your mane is on fire." The half-demon squatted as he answered in a deadpan tone._

On cue, snowflakes fall on Rarity's head, extinguishing the fire. Then said mare looked up to the half-human (No wonder Akira had to sit down.) and asked, "Did you really burn down my shop?"

_"Nope. I was trying not to, though." _

"Where did that roar come from?" The fashionista asked.

_"That would have to be me. I usually do a good job with keeping my emotions in check." Nazou answered. _

"So that roar was YOU?"

_"It would seem so." The half-demon answered. "For the most part, that usually happens when I breathe fire."_

"Are you sure you are a unicorn and not a dragon?"

_"Pretty sure." He knelt down and gently tapped Fox! Twilight on her forehead, reverting her back to a unicorn again, then quickly replied, "I. Told. You. I'm sorry, okay!?" _

Rarity sweatdropped as she watched the two shoot sparks at each other with flames in their eyes, then flinched upon watching her friend transfrom into a white-hot unicorn with a fiery mane and red eyes. Nazou gave a deadpan look and rolled his eyes.

_"The author has issues." He shook his head and sighed in complete dismay. "If you ask, we have a story to advance."_

"Crimson, what are you talking about? Have you been spending time with Pinkie?" The fashionista inquired while Twilight looked at her hooves and stopped when she gasped.

_"I haven't been spending a lot of time with Pinkie."_

* * *

Meanwhile, with the Cutie Mark Crusaders...

"Remind me why we're in here again?" Sweetie Belle groaned as she lowered her head to avoid hitting a branch.

"Well, ever since Scarlet an' her sister came in here, ah heard rumors of somepony in th' Everfree Forest." Applebloom explained as she trotted along. "Sumthin 'long th' lines a ninpony hangin' 'round here. Ah also heard that ninpony can teleport all roun' an' walk on water, walk on trees, an' blend in everywhere."

In response, a black blur sped through the trees, surprising the three. The unicorn filly jumped and looked furtively for something.

"You've been reading my Nann-ga lately, haven't you?" Scootaloo rolled her eyes at her friend and frowned.

"Ah have. Come to think of it, where do yah get 'em?" The lemon filly inquired.

"Most of the ones I have are actually kinda old. But they're still in good quality." She gave her friends a wide grin, then stopped upon feeling the howling wind.

The Crusaders flinched when the nearby bush rustled. Sweetie Belle drew back and stared apprehensively, her friends doing the same. Silence filled the air as the bushes continued to rustle and intensified. Scootaloo picked up a nearby stick and threw it towards the bush, hitting something. Nothing happened.

"Ohhh, that was a bust." Applebloom sighed dejectedly. "Better go home, then, right?"

"I guess." Scootaloo turned to her friend and shook her head. "There wasn't anything in there."

The Crusaders turned around, only to lock eyes with a jet black-coated colt with sky-blue eyes and a disheveled light brown mane/tail. It was quiet. Scootaloo stared at the colt, while Applebloom and Sweetie Belle blinked owlishly. In fact, the colt in question had two small red fang-like marks on the right side of his face. Like the three fillies he was staring down, he was a blank flank and was around their age.

"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" Sweetie Belle shouted loudly.

"WAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!" The colt screamed.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" The Crusaders screamed again.

This continued until said colt fell backwards and collapsed. When he finally regained consciousness, he found himself staring at a pair of green, purple and red-orange eyes.

"Hey, are you okay?" Applebloom asked with a worried tone.

"Y-yeah." He lifted his face and tried to give a small smile as he was helped up, then smiled for a moment. "What's your name?"

"My name's Scootaloo." The gamboge filly introduced herself.

"Pleased tah meet ya. Name's Applebloom." Applebloom piped up.

"Sweetie Belle." The unicorn filly added. "What's yours?"

"Call me Kuro." The colt finished as he gave a small chuckle. "I don't know much about this place, and I managed to survive by staying in empty caves and eating me- I mean, whatever's available."

"I guess?" Sweetie Belle grinned at Kuro, prompting him to smile back and rub the back of his head and laugh in a sheepish manner.

It was also winter in the Everfree, despite being completely independent from the rest of the world. The Crusaders joined in the laughter until the black colt stopped and hung his head in sadness, his eyes concealed by his brown mane; he sighed deeply and looked down at the ground. Sure that he had met three fillies, but the only girls in his life were his mom and adopted older sister (and to an extent, a certain pink hedgehog).

He quickly perked up and kept his depressed look when the bushes and trees rustled; the Crusaders staring apprehensively all around, knowing the danger of BEING in the Everfree. They knew that they were supposed to stay away, but it is in a child's nature to be curious, no matter what kind.

A low growling sound can be heard as the four drew back against each other. Kuro closed his eyes and sighed deeply as he saw a light green aura on his left side, a yellow aura behind him, then a purple aura on his right side followed by a hostile presence, signified by a red aura. He slowly opened his eyes and shifted towards the large figure of a manticore, who then appeared and roared, prompting the four foals to scream loudly.

* * *

Nazou's ears twitched at the clear sound of roaring followed by faint screaming. He paled at the thought at whoever was in there. At the same time, Rarity was expressing concern for Sweetie Belle, turning her head towards the direction of the Everfree. The two mares and found themselves galloping towards Fluttershy's cottage. It doesn't help that his home is on the other side of Ponyville, but then again...

By the time they reached the cottage, the three pegasi looked apprehensively at the natural forest. With hardened eyes, the golden yellow mare merely stared at the entrance, Rainbow Dash doing the same. Fluttershy gulped with fear, the mere thought of the filles lost in there made her worry even more.

_"Where are Applejack and Pinkie?" The half-demon asked. _

"They're still in there." RD frowned at her friend as she gave a visible sigh. "It has been three hours and there's no sign of either one."

_"I'm going in." Nazou firmly answered. _

"WHAT!?" Twilight gasped at the half-demon, her eyes widened with fear. One look at his eyes and he seems confident about it. Almost as if he's done this before... She took a deep breath and sighed. "Alright, I'm coming with you."

_"Twilight... is this because of our Earth pony friends?" _

"Of course. We should divide and conquer into groups of two or three." The purple mare nodded.

* * *

Meanwhile, with Kuro and the Crusaders...

"I learned that ponies are vegetarian. And I'm pres-ceh-teri-blah... I'm not sure about how to pronounce it, but I have to be careful not to hurt it." Kuro thought. "I've dealt with robots, hostile Mobians, hostile humans, but this is the first time I'm dealing with a manticore here... I think it's what they call it. I've only read about it in books, though." He kept an apprehensive look on the manticore as it swiped towards his direction and effortlessly dodged the attack.

"Kuro, what are you doing!?" Sweetie Belle yelled as she turned back to the black colt. "Run!"

"Don't worry about me, I'll catch up." The black colt nodded.

"What about you, Kuro?"

"I'll be fine. I can handle myself." Kuro smiled at the unicorn filly as he lowered his head.

Sweetie Belle nodded back at the colt and bolted after Applebloom and Scootaloo, focusing on finding Rarity or any of her friends. The black colt then smirked at the roaring manticore and galloped towards it. Kuro gave a rage-filled scream as he headbutted the manticore, followed by a strong buck (which isn't as strong as Applejack's) to the stomach, stunning it and giving him a chance to catch up with the Crusaders. He cantered toward a nearby tree and gingerly jumped on the branches, then closed his eyes for a moment; there were several auras towards the north and three smaller ones towards the west. When he opened his eyes, the black colt doubled his efforts as he found himself being pursued by a group of canine-shaped bits and pieces of wood.

While this was happening, the Crusaders are also chased by timberwolves. Sweetie Belle briefly looked back, and screamed when one of them tried to chomp on her tail. Scootaloo started molting her feathers at a time like this as she was panicking from said creatures; she looked back for a moment and tripped on a twig, and rolled over somewhere else.

At the same time, Kuro tried to escape from the timberwolves, but he stepped on a weak branch and fell to the ground, spraining his left hind hoof. The last thing he wanted to do was to use weapons unless it was an emergency and/or a last resort. Under normal circumstances would the strength go to the hind hooves. However, his head's stronger than his hind hooves. He can still buck like a pony, but... it feels a lot like he's more buffalo than pony. Then again... he does enjoy greeting his uncle in the form of a strong tackle.

Back with everypony else at the Everfree Forest entrance...

_"He's far away..." Nazou stated as his ears twitched twice. "He's in trouble." _

"Who?" Twilight asked.

_"I can sense a familiar aura... but it's faint." The half-demon replied apprehensively. _

"Alright."

Everypony broke and entered the natural forest, intent on rescuing their friends... and finding something else...

=Chapter 10 End=

* * *

Even moar Q&A:

Q:Will we see more FluttershyxOC?  
A:Maybe.

Q:Why did you choose FluttershyxOC? I mean that if you take into account their actual ages, Crimson Edge and Fluttershy are 9 years apart.  
A:To quote a certain alicorn, "Love does not discriminate." Oh, and no spoilers.

Q:Is Crimson 27 or 31?  
A:He's physically 31, but acts like he's 27.

Q:Is there anypony who isn't inexperienced with romance?  
A:Well... Shining Armor and Akira are the only married characters out of everyone in the cast.

Q:Crimson's hopeless with romance, isn't he?  
A:Well... he hasn't been able to get a girlfriend for a while.


	11. So Many Flipping Page Breaks!

**_Alt. Title:Dreams Of Shadows and Wings... _**

_*sighs* I hate it when other ponies point out my vertically challenged form. I'm a 19-year old mare for crying out loud, not a filly. Anyway, back to the story._

_If everypony had an aura, I would have to assume that the aura would be taken from the colors of their cutie mark or eye color. That, and aura colors can be inherited if that color is within the same family... or something else..._

_Twilight Sparkle/Shining Armor:Magenta_

_Cadence:Cyan_

_Rainbow Dash:Red_

_Nazou(Crimson Edge):Dark Blue (this is a hint for something)_

_Akira:Orange_

_Scootaloo:Purple_

_Applejack:Green_

_Celestia:Golden Yellow_

_Luna:Cobalt Blue_

_Fluttershy:Aquamarine_

_Rarity:Violet_

_Pinkie Pie:Blue_

_Sweetie Belle:Light Green_

_Applebloom:Yellow_

_Misc notes:I've been reading a lot of romance novels lately, and I want to become a better writer by exploring various genres and topics, but not as far as going for controversial topics or headache-inducing stuff. So there's my rant and enjoy. ;)_

* * *

Somehow... Nazou found himself paired up with Fluttershy for a search party. This is either the best thing that's happened so far... or the most awkward moment in his life. He breathed in the rustic air of the Everfree as his eyes took in the sight of endless sea of trees all around. While this is happening, Fluttershy hung her head as she tried to avoid to avert her gaze at the half-demon.

_"So...?" The half-demon questioned, trying not to read her mind. _

He's looking at me... why is he looking at me?

_"You're one of the cutest mares I've ever seen... if only on the timid side." He cleared his throat and burst into flames, switching to his equine form. _

"Y-you... think so?"

He nodded at the pegasus mare and gave a small smile while slowly trotting along, then sighed deeply. It was after a long period of silence that the butter yellow mare worked up her courage enough to look up towards the unicorn stallion, if not face to face.

"Is... Crimson Edge... your... real name?" Fluttershy inquired.

_"Nope. To this day, even the memory of my real name's a mystery. I only tell someone my current name if I know that person... or pony in your case personally." Crimson answered._

"Can... can I call you... Nazou?"

_"Ah..." He paused then scratched his neck with his forehoof, then turned towards the mare; he stopped trotting and stared at the mare with a strange look on his face. A calm wind blew towards the two, prompting the two to look away from each other out of sheer embarrassment.. or something._

Oh no! What if he has a marefriend? What if he doesn't like me? What if-

The pegasus mare's heart skipped a beat... or two when she felt strangely calm, her eyes briefly widened to the size of dinner plates, then dilated upon locking eyes with the unicorn stallion. It had been a little over a week at best, and recently learned of him being half-human the other day. Fluttershy flinched and tried to back away, but the expression on his face turned from calm to intense as the flames in his eyes slowly died down. Crimson Edge slowly pulled her closer to his arms, his current expression giving way to his feelings; their first meeting initially awkward then gradually giving way... When he saw the pegasus mare for the first time, he was either choking because of the onions or he couldn't handle her immensely bright aquamarine eyes.

For that moment alone, time slowed and their hearts resonated with each other. But... it was this electrifying moment that gave birth to a memory. The butter yellow mare felt the warmth of his coat against her muzzle as her wings quickly flared up. Her heart then pounded faster and faster, loud enough so that the stallion would hear.

When she opened her eyes, Fluttershy felt serene as she smiled at Crimson, her wings slowly closing. The unicorn stallion stopped and smiled back, a calm smile on his equine face and stepped back. He learned many things from this moment as time resumed.

"I... I'm in love with you, Crimson... no... Nazou." Fluttershy bashfully looked away, her face turning a luminescent red.

_"I wish I could say the same, but..." The unicorn stallion averted his gaze as he blushed heavily and his eyes softened. "I'll need a bit more time to think about it." _

"Um... alright..." She shuffled her hooves and looked down at the ground, her cyan eyes hidden by her pink mane.

_"If memory serves, the Future Silver Millennium is the 44th Century, and the Feudal Era happened during the 16th Century. And if this is the distant future, then I think I've been sealed for a while." Crimson thought, then briefly turned to the pegasus mare and suddenly heard his pulse race. "I doubt that books can help me with my love problems." _

Before he could say anymore, a snicker was heard from the bushes, suddenly prompting the unicorn stallion to turn towards the sound of the snickering with an apprehensive look along with a grimace.

"This has tah be the sappiest moment ahve ever seen. Crimson an' Fluttershy?" A familiar Southern drawl was heard as the aforementioned stallion trotted closer and pushed the bushes away with his hoof.

_"Applejack... You... you were watching the entire time!?" Several blue anger marks appeared on Crimson's head as he gave an annoyed look at the orange Earth pony mare. _

"Nope. But ah was 'round fer the kiss..." It was enough to have both Crimson Edge and Fluttershy blush heavily and avert their gaze from each other as the middle Apple sibling chuckled deviously.

"Applejack... umm... now's not a good time to be teasing." Fluttershy shyly interrupted, and gave a quick shriek at the last comment.

"Oh, alright... fine. Ahll stop teasin yah two. 'Sides, why are you two here in the Everfree?" The orange mare questioned.

_"Everypony got worried about you and Pinkie and the Crusaders." Crimson cleared his throat and explained. "Even more so after the both of you didn't come back after awhile. That, and Fluttershy knows her way around here. I feel more at home in a forest, after all." He looked towards a nearby tree and proceeded to walk on it as if the trunk was normal ground. _

"Are you... are yah somekinda ninpony that Twi heah was tellin' me 'bout?"

_"Yeah... do YOU have a problem with that?" _

"Yah mean those ponies that can walk on water, hide in th' shadows, summon stuff, shapeshift, an' all that stuff?"

_"So... you have been listening. I can also use something called fox magic." The unicorn stallion replied. _

The three ponies trotted on while searching for any signs of the Crusaders, then two distant screams were heard, alerting the current party.

* * *

**Meanwhile, with Scarlet and Rarity...**

The alabaster unicorn spent most of her time calling her younger sister's name while the golden yellow pegasus flew around on the air for any signs whatsoever. After two hours of searching, the two met up and sighed in dismay.

"Wow... the Everfree Forest's definitely bigger on the inside than outside." Scarlet sighed.

"It is. The Everfree Forest is a scary place." Rarity replied.

"And how? You think having plants grow on their own, animals feeding on their own and the weather being independent is scary?"

"Yes! Outside of the forest, the pegasi control the weather, Princesses Celestia and Luna move the sun and moon and Earth ponies care for plants and animals. I consider that to be normal for me, at the very least." The alabaster unicorn answered.

"I guess." The pegasus mare's ears perked up and flicked upon hearing something scream... and the extremely faint sound of hoofsteps. It could be anypony... or something else entirely. "Do you hear anything?"

"Hmmm..." Rarity leered at her surroundings as she took a couple steps forward, then flinched upon seeing the bushes rustle intensely and hearing the sound of somepony screaming followed by a loud growling sound. "Let's come closer to the source of this, shall we, Scarlet?"

Scarlet nodded in response as she followed the fashionista towards the bush. Faster pulses and time slowing, the alabaster unicorn mare slowly trotted closer, becoming more and more fearful with every step. Unable to take anymore of the suspense, she opened the bushes to reveal a familair-ish looking black-coated Earth pony colt with a short and spiky brown mane. What distinguished him from every colt was that he had armor-piercing blue eyes and two small fang-like marks on the right side of his face. That, and he had an even more disheveled appeareance, but somehow still had energy to even stand up for a little bit.

"Hey... have you seen a trio of fillies?" The mechanic asked.

"Y-yeah... I mean, I just met 'em. They remind me of some of the girls back in the orphanage from a long time ago." The colt replied then mumbled something about this world being more girly than he thought it would be.

"Are you an orphan?" Rarity inquired.

"My friends were orphans. But..." He didn't finish, as the memory of the destruction of his former village was still fresh in his mind. "Umm... what's your name?"

"Rarity. What about you?"

"Name's... Kuro. Sweetie Belle told me 'bout you."

"Where. Is. Sweetie Belle!?" The fashionista cried as she violently shook the colt's shoulders.

"W-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-aaaaaahhh... Lem-muh-muh-muh-me go..." His face turned blue with shock and was about to puke had not Scarlet interrupted the alabaster mare.

"Can you show me where they are?" Scarlet inquired.

"Umm... I can point you to where they are." Kuro answered.

"How long have you been here?"

"Three days, at best. I tried eating me- I mean the non-poisonous plants." He was about to say the m-word. "That was too close."

"What was?" The golden yellow mare gave a confused look.

Kuro whispered it to Scarlet, who promptly frowned at the thought. "Yeah, that was too close. Remember when Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy came in?"

"Uh-huh. After Rainbow told me that they were vegetarian, I made a point to not mention you-know-what."

"Mention what, darling?" Rarity interrupted.

"Uhhh, nothing. Sorry." He gave a nervous chuckle and sweatdropped. Kuro's ears drooped as he briefly hung his head and relaxed his shoulders. "I didn't mean to. Anyway, umm... I can sense a light green aura five miles north of where we are, while purple and yellow aura's further away."

Both mares nodded as they looked towards the direction the black colt was pointing towards. Upon a closer look, he looked exhausted, disheveled and tired, so to speak.

* * *

**Meanwhile, with Twilight and Rainbow Dash...**

It was enough that the Everfree Forest was scary as is with their independence and all, but that didn't stop Crimson from going in. Oh, wait. Crimson actually feels more at home here. Okay, that's enough with my author rants. Moving on.

"Wow... almost two weeks and he's already adjusted here." Twilight muttered to herself.

"For someone who's been far-flung into the future, I'm surprised he managed to adjust to life here." Rainbow Dash commented.

"Wait. He's from the past?" The librarian asked.

"Yep. Nazou told me that he was born in a period of time called the Feudal Era. Do you have any idea what that is?"

"Sorry, that's not my forte, Rainbow. Better ask Lyra for that."

"You mean that unicorn who's obsessed with humans?" The cyan pony inquired.

"She still thinks that humans exist. But then again... this is 90XX AU." The lavender mare replied.

"AU?"

"You know, After Unity." She briefly thought about it and shook her head out of frustration. "I should ask Time Turner about this. He knows a lot about time."

The two mares trotted on until a distant scream was heard. It was shrill, but faint. Nevertheless, they recognized that scream and immediately galloped towards that direction.

* * *

**With Sweetie Belle...**

Breathing heavily, pulse racing, hooves pounding, the alabaster filly found herself further away from her friends amidst the panic. She lost Scootaloo and Applebloom while still running away from the timberwolf pack. Her eyes shrank upon encountering an ursa minor and became too scared to move upon being surrounded by that and timberwolves. Her eyes shrank into the size of pinpricks as her heart beat at an unatturally fast tempo.

The alabaster filly curled up into fetal position and was ready to resign to her fate when a familiar voice rang through the forest and several magic bolts shot through the bushes, destroying the timberwolves. Next, a black blur appeared and slapped something on the ursa minor's head, then backflipped towards the filly.

"Kuro!" Sweetie Belle cried as he assumed a defensive feral stance. "Are you al-"

This was interrupted by Twilight and Rarity charging through the bushes and shooting a series of rapid-fire magic bolts at the ursa minor then Scarlet and Rainbow Dash tackled the star bear at mach two, stunning it.

The fashionista then prompted to gallop towards her younger sister and nearly crush the filly in a manner similar to Pinkie when she did this to Twilight and Crimson a couple chapters ago.

"Sweetie Belle... how could you worry me like that!?" Rarity cried dramatically as her eyes briefly widened.

"I... I'm-"

Before the moment could be finished, it was interrupted by the ursa minor recovering and roared loudly. Kuro galloped towards the star bear and quickly slapped a second something on its stomach. Both tags promptly exploded, sending the colt flying and stunning the star bear; Scarlet quickly caught the colt in her arms and landed on the ground, releasing him from her grasp.

Kuro then promptly blacked out and collapsed from hunger, alerting everypony else to his side. After lifting the colt by telekinesis, Twilight set him on her back and gave a visible sigh.

"Well, at least we found one of the Crusaders." Scarlet commented.

Rarity was about to give her younger sister a lecture when the filly came close to bursting to tears, and nearly getting killed was punishment enough for Sweetie Belle. Instead, teh fashionista gave her younger sister a comforting nuzzle.

"Alright... hey, wait! Who's this colt?" Twilight asked the filly.

"His name's Kuro. We found him while Scootaloo, Applebloom and I were lost." Sweetie Belle looked up at the purple mare. "Umm... what were those slips of paper on the ursa minor?"

"Exploding tags." Scarlet answered.

"Exploding tags?" Twilight asked.

"Exploding tags. They're these slips of paper charged with magic that detonate after a set amount of time or remotely." The mechanic explained. "In a sense, they are bombs, but exploding tags can be used to stun."

"How do you know about this?"

"I was talking with my brother, Shiro about this the other day."

"Oh... right. Heh." The libarian sweatdropped and nervously chuckled. "Wait, what do you mean you were raised by humans? You're a pony."

One extremely lengthy explanation later...

"So you're saying that you're neither human or equine!? What are you?" Twilight exclaimed, her scientific side taking over.

"Well, Mobians for the most part have animal qualities in addition to being bipedal like humans. And uhh, some of them aren't... vegetarian." The golden yellow mare gulped at the next thing she was going to say. It would either disgust or unnerve everypony else.

"I ate chicken once." Rainbow Dash raised a hoof and commented nonchalantly. "Although... that's a story for another time."

"Ewww..." Everypony except Scarlet cringed at the thought.

"What? We had griffons in flight camp. And I'm fine with fish. "

"Sure? But if it will make everyone feel better, I don't eat me-" The mechanic quickly put her hoof to her mouth, then thought. "I promised Kuro and Shiro that I would never mention meat in front of anypony. Mr. Sonic eats meat, Tails eats meat, and well, everyone in the family's prescepaterian. I don't think I'll be able to handle being vegan or telling everyone about meat, after seeing cows and pigs in Sweet Apple Acres. No, I can't bring myself to do it."

"If you're not comfortable saying so, then I completely understand." Rarity nodded. "Now, what's this about being vegan?"

"Vegan? I never said anything about being vegan."

"What's a vegan?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"Being vegan means that you can't eat anything naturally made by animals like honey, eggs and milk. It also means that you can't eat cake. Or bread. And even I know that vegetarians need milk."

"Anyway... we should go back to finding the others." RD cleared her throat. "As much as it's fun to talk about other things now, we can't forget about everypony else. Scarlet, we need to talk about this later, 'kay?"

Everypony nodded as they continued their search...

* * *

**With Crimson Edge/Nazou, Applejack and Fluttershy... **

The current party trotted on until they encountered a statue of a large dragon. What was strange about it was that it had a serpentine body, numerous scales, four legs, a long snout, crescent shaped nostrils, and a longer tail. If it had color, it would have a black body, a network of green hexagon-shaped markings, red eyes, black whiskers and tail, and its arms are thin with three toes. But for the most part, it had no color and seemed to be curled up around a spherical item of some sort and is four times the size of Princess Celestia.

Crimson stared at the gigantic statue and sighed as he looked down at the ground. The dragon statue had a menacing look, but at the same time looked as if it had watched the annals of time for far longer. Applejack turned towards the unicorn stallion and then at the dragon statue, awestruck at what she had seen. Fluttershy stayed behind the stallion in an effort to hide her fear.

"Are you okay, sugahcube?" The Stetson-toting mare asked.

_"Y-yeah... I just realized something." The unicorn stallion gulped as he found himself trembling in fear. "What's the year?" _

"Why? Wait... yah don't look so good."

_"Someone's nearby. And I don't mean Fluttershy." Crimson replied with an apprehensive look on his face. _

On cue, a familiar-ish looking equine figure appeared. Evil laughter echoed throughout the forest clearing as the equine figure transformed into a canine-ish figure. Upon a closer look, the three equines found themselves standing in front of a large, grey wolf demon with teal eyes. Crimson immediately transformed into his vulpine form, highly similar to his equine form, but with the exception of him having mahogany fur, black paws, a white underside, and four mahogany, white-tipped tails.

Nazou assumed an offensive feral stance with one of his paws raised and merely glared at the grey wolf.

"Grarh vul rak ta." The wolf snarled.

_"Nu giel frah dan." The four-tailed fox calmly replied while leering at the wolf, his ears low. "Shral ruk zah, Fahran." _

"Fiik dah rua, Nahzou?" Farran sat down on his haunches and raised his paw.

_"Fiik dah el rua. Kii fuld kiiram vei tul." Nazou answered. _

"Korh lef sah cui rahn."

_"Wir dah lua?" _

"Wiir dah lua." Farran nodded and left, assuming equine form and disappearing into the shadows.

"What was that?" Applejack finally asked as Nazou reverted back to equine form.

_"Demon language." The unicorn stallion quickly answered. "Uhh, it's complicated." _

"What did he say?"

_"We were sizing each other up for a bit, but then I asked him to put off the challenge for later." Crimson translated and then turned to Fluttershy, who promptly tackled him with no fear whatsoever, completely surprised by the moment. _

"Hehe, have ah mentioned how Fluttershy really loves animals?" The Stetson-toting mare smirked as she gave a mischievious grin. "Well~ she seems to take a likin tah you, sugahcube."

_"Wuh? What's that supposed to mean!?" The unicorn stallion stammered as he blushed. "I... it's not like..." _

"It's written all over yer face." Applejack bluntly replied with a flat tone. "Yer not doin' a good job of hahdin' yer feelings, are ya?"

_[Hey! Why the heck's Applejack and Fluttershy's OOC!?] _

Applejack and Fluttershy's OOC? Excuuuse me for NOT DOING a good job on her, okay!?

_[Yeah? Well, do something!] _

Fine, fine. But if you or Pinkie Pie mention any hint about my height, I'll-

"Umm, what was that?" Fluttershy asked as she released her grip.

_"What are you talking about, Fluttershy? You're hearing things." The unicorn stalion gave a loud chuckle as he rubbed the back of his neck with his hoof. _

"Sugahcube, ah can tell you've been alive longer than we have, an' yah think we're all crazy or sumthin'." Applejack shook her head and frowned.

_"What made think about it?" _

"Well... for starters, ah dun hafta read yer thoughts, but yer body language is giving it all away. Ah know yah like Fluttershy." The Stetson-toting mare's answer made both the pegasus mare and unicorn stallion blush heavily.

_"Then why are you hounding me for it!?" _

"This is something that Pinkie or Rares would normally do, an' yah shouldn't keep yer feelins bottled up all th' tahme, sugahcube."

_"If you put it that way, Applejack." _

"What's wrong?"

_"The last time I was around was the 44th Century, and now I end up in a painfully bright place filled with colorful ponies and magic. Can you tell me when this is?" _

"It's 9013 AU, why?"

_"Did you say... 9013?" Crimson paled at the southern mare's answer, his ears going flat as his sky blue eyes shrank to the size of pinpricks. "Year 9013?" _

"Eeyup."

"Umm... Applejack?" Fluttershy shyly asked. "Is... he alright?"

"He's not taking this well." The orange mare shook her head and hid her face behind her hat as she deadpanned.

* * *

Meanwhile, with Twilight's party...

"Wait a minute, so you're a Mobian raised by humans!? For how long?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"I was probably a little kit when I was taken in at a young age, and I stayed until I was around 15." Scarlet answered. "It was hard being the only Mobian in a human community, and it still is."

"Spike feels the same way, being the only dragon among ponies." Twilight sighed. "Are there any other family members you want to tell us about?"

Everypony trotted on, then the golden yellow mare sighed as her ears went flat. "Well, there are two more, but... I don't want to talk about it."

"Why not?" Sweetie Belle asked innocently.

"I really don't want to talk about it." She found herself looking down at the ground, her eyes concealed by her red mane.

"Are you okay?"

"Thanks for your concern, but... I'll let you know when I find Applebloom or Scootaloo, 'kay?"

"Wait!" The cyan pony tried to catch her younger friend, but flew off before anymore words were said.

A loud growling sound startled everypony, but it turned out to be from Sweetie Belle, who quickly gave an awkward smile and blushed. Kuro briefly woke up to see that he found himself riding Twilight, then went back to sleep.

* * *

Back with Crimson's party...

_"Wait, we're still near the dragon statue, right?" _

Y-yeah... And yes, you've been flung at least 6000 years into the future. Congratulations. I'm guessing you're not taking it well?

_"Nope. This is either mindblowing or freakin' insane." Crimson spaced out into the trees. _

At this point, I'm usually the voice in your head since both our thoughts are separate. I can read yours, you can't read mine. But anyway, I'm having ideas for a bonus chapter.

_"Bonus?" The unicorn stallion asked._

Bonus. If I told you or Pinkie, then it wouldn't be a surprise anymore.

"Are you sure you're alright, sugahcube?"

_"Must be the Everfree getting to me, I guess." He shook his head and felt the dragon statue with his hoof. Something from the back of his mind stirred as the unicorn stallion felt a warm sensation in his body. It wasn't long until a dark blue aura pulsed twice until color was slowly restored to the statue, engulfing the area in a bright light..._

* * *

White Space...

[Nazou-kun, wake up...]

_"Ngh... What the heck!?" Nazou growled as he stirred to the voice. He slowly stood and shielded his eyes from the blinding light. When the light cleared enough for him to see, the half-demon saw a humanoid figure slowly walking from the horizon. The figure shrank and shrank until it became the size of a small child, but the child had a strangely familiar appearance. _

The half-demon recognized the child. He gaped in complete shock as the figure revealed itself to be a certain pigtailed/meatball-headed pink moon rabbit. A nostalgic moment filled as the child gave a warm smile and looked up then smiled back.

_"Chibi... no, Small Lady? Is... is that you?" The half-demon asked. _

[It's been a while, hasn't it?] The child responded, an air of maturity surrounding her as if much older.

_"It... it has been. Where am I? And why are you here!?"_

[Even I'm not sure what this is, but I do remember talking to you everyday after you were sealed away.] The pink moon rabbit giggled. [What have you been up to lately?]

_"I just found out I was flung six thousand years into the future." He deadpanned as he crossed his arms and frowned. "I was actually hoping you could give me some advice on a girl I like." _

[Nazou-kun, I'm just a kid. I can't tell you romantic advice; I'm in the same boat as you are.] Chibiusa looked up at her friend. [But you have to remember that I'm at this point a figment of your memory. And you don't have to be formal with me.]

_"I... I'm sorry. I find it jarring that it is okay to refer to you this way." Nazou shook his head and sighed. "I'm not sure what happened while I was sealed away, but I do know that the Earth is in danger again." _

[Even with the chaos in sight, it's your turn to protect the Earth for peace, love and harmony... and everyone in it. I KNOW you can do it.] The pink moon rabbit nodded, then closed her eyes and giggled to herself as she put her hands behind her back, then disappeared.

* * *

Everfree Forest...

When the light cleared, Crimson, Applejack and Fluttershy found themselves face to face with a wingless black dragon with yellow eyes and green markings all over its body in place of scales. The pegasus mare found herself immobilized with fear as her eyes shrank to the size of pinpricks. She did not like where this is going.

Applejack became awestruck by the sight and hid her gasp behind her hat while Crimson Edge took a deep breath and stared solemnly at the dragon. Of course, the unnamed dragon spun around the three and flew away, presumably by magic, leaving behind a strange item... Said item glowed a bright light and felt warm, and upon contact, the unicorn stallion became clad in (hehe, pun) silver shining armor. On his back is a grey cape with a white moon crescent. He fell on his haunches once the armor disappeared.

[To transform into your Knight Form, you need love, friendship and the light of the moon...] Chibiusa's voice echoed in his head.

_"So... this truly is the future after all..." The unicorn stallion mused to himself, then looked up at the dense forest and sighed deeply. _

* * *

Meanwhile with Applebloom and Scootaloo...

"Are they finally gone?" Scootaloo fell on her haunches and panted heavily.

The youngest Apple sibling looked back for a moment, then glanced towards her friend, doing the same. "We fahnally lost 'em, Scoots. But..."

"But what?"

"We're even more lost than before." Applebloom hung her head in sadness. "An' ah don't even know th' way back."

The two remaining Crusaders trotted on in silence, fear overwhelming their curiousity. It didn't help that this part of the forest was filled with even more fearsome monsters and parts of the ground beneath them aren't stable. Of course, the Everfree Forest, like Pinkie Pie defied the laws of nature... in its case, it was akin to the forests from the distant past.

In this part of the Everfree, it's also filled with a malevolent fog that adds to the atmosphere of the untamed nature of this forest. The youngest Apple sibling became tired as her eyes drooped, as if a large weight suddenly appeared on her back.

"Why do ah... feel... so... weak?" Applebloom strained as she trotted closer to the fog.

"Applebloom, we should..." The gamboge filly collapsed mid-sentence and blacked out as her eyes felt heavy.

* * *

Back with Twilight's party...

Scarlet finally came back with no news of the other Crusaders, much to the disappointment of everypony. It was completely surprising how even with the help of pegasi, the Everfree Forest continues to confound and confuse. And Pinkie's still missing for crying out loud! Soon after, the current party found themselves in a dense fog that stunk of fear, hatred and malevolence.

"I've never been this far into the Everfree Forest before..." Twilight mused to herself. She looked back for a moment. Everypony's still here, ableit tired from searching for their friends...

"I knew the Everfree was scary, but this takes the cake." Rainbow Dash shuddered and cringed as she rubbed her sides with her hooves. "What about you, Rarity?"

"Strange... I can't access my magic." The alabaster mare shook her head. "Sweetie, are you alright?"

"I... I think so..." The unicorn filly nodded tiredly as she rubbed her head with her hooves.

"Why... do I feel tired... even though I just woke up?" Kuro groaned as he slowly got off Twilight. "Uhh... can you use your magic to teleport us to Applebloom and Sweetie Belle, Twilight?"

The librarian shook her head with disappointment after a flash of purple shot up from her horn, but nothing happened. Scarlet and Rainbow Dash felt even more drained, forced to the ground as the energy left their wings. This fog is apparently too thick for pegasi wings to deal with. Kuro found himself coughing almost violently and breathing heavily as soon as he inhaled a little bit of his surroundings.

"Twilight, wait! This fog... We should get outta here..." The black colt grunted in pain. "This isn't an ordinary miasma... this disables natural abilities and... and-" He collapsed again before he could finish.

"C'mon, girls, let's-" Rainbow Dash suddenly felt her heart slow considerably. Her legs began to lose its strength as her body became heavy, similar to what Scootaloo experienced. "Urgh... why does... everything feel heavy all of a sudden?"

"Hey, what's happening to everypony!?" The libarian looked around and saw that her friends were unconscous and/or immobilized. "What the-!? I can't move!" She tried to move her legs, but couldn't... almost as if petrified. The color drained from her face as she watched Rarity fall firsty, then Sweetie Belle and the pegasi succumb to the miasma. It wasn't long until she felt something escape from her body. Like smoke rising out of charcoal. She was about to collapse when a familiar figure came rushing in and everything blacked out for her.

* * *

With Crimson's party...

Applejack and Fluttershy found themselves struggling to keep up with the unicorn stallion as he galloped at full speed, bursting into flames to reveal a large four-tailed fox with a canine build. His mahogany fur contrasted with his white underside and tail tips as it blended somewhat with his black paws, so to speak, basically almost a blur leaving behind a trail of illusionary blue flames as he ran faster.

"Wait!" The butter yellow pegasus called out to her friends as she galloped her hardest, then tripped on a root of a tree and rolled, spraining her hindleg. It didn't help that her wing still hurt from her previous encounter with Chrysalis.

The Stetson-toting mare stopped galloping and cantered towards her friend, motioning for the large vulpine to dash back to the mares.

"Sugahcube, are yah alright?" Applejack asked her friend with a lot of concern in her voice.

"I..." Fluttershy cringed. A painful sensation shot up her sprained hindleg as she tried to move, but winced in pain and fell on her haunches. "I think I sprained my ankle.

_"First your wing, then your leg." Crimson shook his head as he reverted back to his normal form and knelt down. He summoned a first-aid kit from his hammerspace and muttered something about irony as he tore some fabric from his robes, revealing a black something underneath and snugly wrapped the fabric around the pegasus mare's leg after applying peroxide. "There. It should heal up faster like that." _

While he was doing this, Fluttershy felt a warm sensation from her heart as the half-human dressed her injury. It was pretty similar to what she felt before being caught by Applejack earlier. She winced for a moment, then gave a warm smile at him as she remembered doing this with the animals back home in her cottage and spaced out for a moment only to snap back to reality when the half-human closed his first aid kit and sigh while crossing his arms.

_"Do you think Twilight and the others have found Scootaloo-chan and Saku-chan?" Nazou asked the Stetson-toting mare. _

"I doubt it, sugahcube." Applejack shook her head as she gave a confused look at the half-human. "That last part. What does it mean?"

_"It means bloom in Neighponese. I have a habit of doing that to friends, but they often don't stick." The older Hayashi shook his head as he chuckled then gave a sigh at the Stetson-toting mare. "I can't wait until the night of the new moon this time of year." _

"New moon? Anything special going on, sugahcube?"

_"Not that I know of. I noticed that the six of you are almost like sisters. Is the bond of friendship that strong?" _

"Well, if ya think 'bout it, Flutters an' Dash have known each other since they were fillies, Rares' parents knew mahn purdy well, an' Pinkie spent her fillyhood in a rock farm and 'Twi lived in Canterlot. Then there's th' fact that Rarity and Fluttershy spend Tuesday at the spa. An ah member makin Twi honorary family at one point." The middle Apple sibling answered.

_"そうですか。" [I see.] The half-demon sighed. "I'm surprised none of you have made any death threats towards me for this." _

"Now why would ah do that?"

_"With the exception of Twilight and Rainbow Dash, no one else knows me that well... out of the six of you. Princess Luna and the Crusaders are more likely to render me deaf with their voices." _

"But yer such a gentlecolt with yer... fancy language-" Applejack protested.

_"First and foremost, Japanese is NOT fancy. Second of all, better wait until you see me eat." Nazou grinned. _

"Are yah challengin' me tah an eatin' contest!?"

_"Yeah!" _

Both cleared their throats and turned towards the north. The half-demon's ears flicked twice as he took a deep breath and growled softly. Without any second thought, he picked up Applejack and Fluttershy with relative ease and started running towards that direction. Despite being bipedal, the half-demon is somehow able to run slightly faster than most Earth ponies courtesy of his time in Mobius. His feet pounded on the ground and Fluttershy on his right side can hear his heart race as Nazou literally ran with the wind.

Everything around him became a blur as the Everfree turned into a speeding mass of green and disappeared. When he saw a dense fog ahead, he stopped and dug his heels onto the ground, then knelt down and gently dropped the two mares.

"Have ah mentioned how ya look a mite like Big Mac?" Applejack deadpanned as she looked up.

_"I should meet him sometime to see if I do." The half-demon grinned at the mare, then adopted a serious look as he stared at the fog. _

"What's wrong, N- Crimson?" Fluttershy asked with concern.

_"Somewhere in this fog, are Twilight and the others... and beyond where they are, Applebuck and Scooteroll." _

"It's Applebloom and Scootaloo, sugahcube." The Stetson-toting mare facehoofed and sighed to her dismay.

The butter yellow mare drew back and shuddered in fear, afraid of the uncertainties ahead...

=Chapter 11 End=


	12. Ominous Sneak Peek

Darkness. Thats all there was when I regained consciousness. I noticed that I was unable to move my arms because I heard something clink, and it felt like the chain-bracelets were tying me to something. Then it hit me: I remembered buying time enough for everyone to escape and staring face to face with Crystal Faker. She had that hateful look when I mentioned Cadence, then commanded her changelings to attack me simultaneously. It didn't help that I was still recovering from my injures from our last encounter, and just trying to move an inch forced me to cough up blood.

"Heh... looks like I overdid myself this time around." I thought while smirking to myself. "I wonder if that eclipse meant anything at all..."

"So... you're finally awake..." A new voice hissed.

I didn't flinch, but saw a pair of dark green eyes in the darkness. To be honest, I wasn't that surprised when I heard that voice echo in my head.

"Even when cornered, you are still a force to be reckoned with. Your hatred for me has the same strength as your love for your family." The voice chuckled evilly. "Hmm... the mere magnitude of your love exceeds that of-"

"Let me guess... you're going to use the very same power that defeated you on your last encounter with Cadence and Twilight just so you can grab Shining Armor for yourself again!?" I growled with rising anger in my voice and roared. "Like I said, I would rather die than let you uproot anymore lives!"

The voice cackled loudly at my threat. She knew of my injuries, but I can tell that she was planning to use my own power against everyone else. A soft green light glowed from her horn, revealing her envious eyes... and her face, none other than Crystal Faker. My body was writhing in pain as I felt my chest turn cold and color drain from my face. I tried to scream, but couldn't. I tried to roar, but nothing. It reminded me so much of that fateful moment, that moment after my grandmother sacrificed herself. My older sister tried to calm me down, but I brushed her away. She pleaded for me to look at her face, then watched helplessly and fell with a shocked look.

I'm glad I knocked her out, because I didn't want her to see me go berserk. When I did, I killed so many with only a sword on my right hand. Everyone I killed saw the hatred that they held for me. Everybody poured out their fear and hatred on a half-human like me, and the next three years were the result of my wrath. My rampage went on for three years, hearing only their screams of fear and pain as I ruthlessly cut them down. The darkness called out to my soul, and I answered to it, in turn losing what I once was for the power I hold now.

My vision faded as the Crystal Faker blurred, then I hung my head in defeat and stopped.

=Side Story 1 End=


End file.
